Malacañang on Saturday asked the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to help the government track down wanted bomber Basit Usman, who is reportedly wounded and is believed to be hiding in Maguindanao.
Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said doing so could be considered a demonstration of the MILF’s sincerity towards the peace process.
“(N)i-request po natin sa kanila na help us find si Usman and yun po ang isang ni-request natin sa kanila,” he said on government-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan.
The operation and the firefight that followed are now the subject of parallel investigations by government agencies and by an MILF panel. The clash left 44 PNP Special Action Force troopers, 18 MILF members, and seven civilians dead.
Lacierda said the MILF already showed signs of sincerity when it committed to return the firearms and personal effects of the fallen SAF commandos and when MILF peace panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal appeared before a Senate investigation on the Jan. 25 incident.
At a Senate hearing on Thursday, chief MILF peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said the group did not know that Usman and Marwan were in the area. He also said the MILF will help look for Usman.
“Standing order na ‘yon,” he also said in an interview with GMA News Online earlier that day. — Joel Locsin/JDS, GMA News
