Dec 102014
A Malacañang official assured the public on Wednesday that deadly bus explosion in Bukidnon will be fully investigated.
At a press briefing, deputy presidential spokesman Usec. Abigail Valte condemned the incident, and said authorities are already hunting down those behind the bombing.
“The AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] is now supporting the PNP [Philippine National Police] as to finding the perpetrators of this act,” Valte told reporters.
“To my knowledge, there are no groups yet—at least as far as I was informed—that have claimed responsibility; but, certainly, the full investigation is already underway,” she added.
An improvised explosive device went off inside a Rural Transit Mindanao bus located in Maramag town late Tuesday afternoon, killing 11 people and hurting 21 others. On Wednesday, the military reduced the number of fatalities to 10. The number of wounded persons was placed at 31.
Military spokesman Col. Resty Padilla said the bus explosion might be a terrorist act, but Bukidnon Gov. Jose Maria Zubiri Jr. said extortion may be the motive behind the incident.
Valte also assured government assistance for the victims of the bombing.
“We do extend our sympathies to the families of the nine as well as the injured, and we will be assisting in any way that we can for what has happened to them,” Valte said. — Andreo Calonzo/RSJ, GMA News
