MARAWI
CITY, Lanao del Sur, Oct. 21 (PIA) --- The Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM) will establish a task force to intensify law
enforcement in the region, especially here in the province.
The decision was made following the killing of Marawi City’s Police Chief Superintendent Abner Wahab Santos on October 17.
Members
of the ARMM’s Regional Peace and Order Council and Lanao del Sur’s
Provincial Peace and Order Council convened in a joint emergency
security meeting on October 19, at the Provincial Capitol to discuss
possible actions that would be taken in response to the incident.
Santos
was killed at 2:00 p.m. on October 17 while driving his vehicle at
Crossing Sarimanok, Brgy. Luksa Datu in Marawi City. The victim suffered
multiple gunshots on the head and was dead on the spot. The suspects
are still unidentified.
ARMM Governor Mujiv Hataman has condemned
the killing saying the police officer’s execution was a “heinous and
cowardly act that demonstrates brutality and an utter lack of regard for
the value of human life.”
Hataman and Lanao del Sur Gov.
Mamintal Adiong, Jr. presided over the meeting and agreed to create the
joint task force comprising of the regional and provincial governments,
the military, the police, and civil society organizations.
Officials
who attended the meeting agreed on drafting a resolution defining the
structure and tasks of the members of the task force that would address
peace and order problems in the region.
It was concluded
that the killing of the police chief was due to his active involvement
against drug syndicates operating in the city and in nearby towns.
Lanao
del Sur is a component province of ARMM, with four other provinces
namely Maguindanao, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. “Hindi ito ang panahon
para magsisihan (This is not the time for us to blame one another).
These are all our responsibility, these are all our accountability,”
Hataman said.
Haroun Al-Rashid Lucman, ARMM vice-governor;
Col. Roseller Murillo, 103rd brigade commander; and Police Chief Supt.
Ronald Estilles, ARMM’s regional police director, also attended the
meeting.
Hataman also urged the active participation of
the general public to secure peace in their respective communities. “The
success of the government’s mandate on peace and security depends on
the participation of the community,” he said.
The councils
will also create a ‘Special Investigating Task Group Abner’ that will
further investigate the killing. (BPI/APB/PIA-10)
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