MANILA – Complacency and the “laid-back attitude” of government officials, peace negotiators, and field commanders are to blame for the recent massacre in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, according Former President Fidel V. Ramos.
Sunday’s bloody encounter between members of the Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police Special Action Forces (PNP-SAF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) resulted in the slaughter of at least 44 PNP-SAF commandos.
Ramos said the deplorable incident was a result of the lack of coordination between government troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), as well as an offshoot of “poor strategic direction from the commander-in-chief.”
In a statement, Ramos also pointed to the head of the government peace panel, Prof. Miriam Coronel Ferrer, and to the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, Secretary Teresita ‘Ging’ Deles for their failure to seek the advice of retired military men.
The “two leading ladies” should have “availed of the advice” given by retired AFP and PNP officers, on account of their vast knowledge of the turmoil in Mindanao, Ramos said.
He likewise berated the MILF, pointing to what he described as a lack of sincerity in establishing peace in the strife-torn region.