(PHOTO - Relatives and friends of the victims of last Wednesday's bus bombing in Makati City light candles while policewomen (left) offer flowers at the blast site on EDSA-Buendia yesterday. Right INSET shows the computer-generated images of the two bombers. ERNIE PEÑAREDONDO)
MANILA, JANUARY 29, 2011 (STAR) Malacañang has put up a P1-million reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspects in the bus bombing that killed five passengers and wounded 13 others last Jan. 25 along EDSA in Makati City.
President Aquino said the reward would be increased if necessary to show the government's determination to resolve the case.
"There was a review of all potential groups that had done incidents similar to the bombing of Jan. 25. Steps are being taken to identify the perpetrators as well as the actual methodology... I will not reveal how we will capture them but I did order the provision of a million-peso reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of all the suspects involved in this case and we will increase that as necessary," Aquino told reporters after the turnover of dividends from government-owned and controlled corporations.
"There was a review also of all potential threats within the country and the steps we have done... there is really a need to get force multipliers in the cities involved in this fight (against) terrorism," Aquino said.
The President said his decision to put up a bounty was made during a meeting with intelligence services Thursday afternoon. He added that the money would come from the Office of the President's contingency and intelligence funds.
During the security cluster meeting, he ordered a review of all plans, travel advisories and potential threats to make sure that no detail of the potential area of concern would be missed.
The President said the security cluster approved the maximization of security guards, barangay tanods and chairmen, and other community-based peace and order personnel in helping and coordinating with the Philippine National Police (PNP).
These community-based personnel, he said, would be tapped to provide a monitoring arm for the government in its fight against terrorists.
Two persons of interest
National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Nicanor Bartolome, along with PNP chief Director General Raul Bacalzo and National Security Adviser Cesar Garcia, said that various angles were still being pursued regarding the bus bombing.
Bartolome released the sketches and composite computer illustrations of two "persons of interest" who could shed light on the incident.
He explained that the two are not considered suspects yet, although initial investigation showed they were the ones who occupied the seats where the bomb was left.
Bartolome said two persons boarded the Newman Goldliner bus at Heritage Hotel along Roxas Boulevard and paid fares up to EDSA Ayala. The two were carrying a black bag that may have contained the 81-mm mortar used to blow up the bus.
They disembarked before reaching the Ayala bus stop, witnesses said. The bomb exploded along EDSA near the corner of Buendia Avenue.
"We're looking for them because they may be able to contribute to the solution of the case. And as I've mentioned earlier, they are not being considered suspects but persons of interest," Bartolome said.
One person was described as between 5'5'" to 5'7" in height, of medium build, fair complexioned, between 30 and 35 years old and weighing 70 to 75 kilograms.
The other was said to be between 30 to 35 years old, medium built, fair complexioned and weighing 70 to 75 kg.
Bartolome said they are not imposing any deadline for solving the case because the investigation could not be rushed.
No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing, and Bacalzo said police "have not considered or we have not identified any particular group as of yet" because the investigation was still ongoing.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and representatives of the Australian government have offered help to local investigators looking into the bus bombing.
A ranking police member of the special task group probing the bombing said American investigators made a courtesy call last Wednesday, while Australian investigators offered assistance Thursday.
"We normally have the American presence and Australian presence. As you know terrorism is a worldwide threat and it's really a contest between the security services of every country," President Aquino said.
The US and Australian governments were among several countries that issued travel advisories warning their citizens not to travel to the Philippines due to terrorist threats.
Three representatives from the US embassy were also spotted taking pictures of the bus inside the Southern Police District headquarters in Taguig City last Friday.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima announced that President Aquino had ordered the creation of a special joint unit of the PNP and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to track down the sources of bomb scares that hit establishments in Makati and Manila last Thursday.
De Lima said issuing bomb scares - serious or mischievous - should be considered a serious crime.
"These people are also creating some kind of terror. Initially, a bomb scare is also a terrorist act until validation is made that it was a prank. If it was a prank, then that can be considered economic sabotage because you disrupt the operation of establishments - just like that on Ayala Avenue, which is the premiere business center of the country," she told reporters in an ambush interview.
She said bomb scares, including false alarms, only aggravate the current situation as they result in "more panic and anxiety among the working and commuting public."
Preventive measures
Aside from the 372 bus marshals deployed in Metro Manila, Bartolome said they were also eyeing more security measures for public transportation such as the installation of closed-circuit television cameras.
Security adviser Garcia said a possible terror attack in Metro Manila was a "continuing threat" since the region was considered an "aspirational target" for terror groups.
He, however, added that not all threat groups have the capability to carry out an attack in Metro Manila.
Garcia said the government was actively monitoring groups that might have the capability to carry out terror threats.
Bacalzo said they had been receiving various reports on possible disruptions such as during the Feast of the Black Nazarene but these were very raw information.
"The threats are very general. As I've said, the threats are not area-specific, they are not group specific, they are just information of a general threat not only in Mindanao but also in other parts of the country," Bacalzo said.
Government agents are focusing on five Muslim terrorists believed to be involved in the bombing of the Newman Goldliner bus.
Combined police and military intelligence agents are gathering evidence to pin down the suspects, who are members of the Rajah Solaiman and Abu Sayyaf.
One of the suspects had a pending case in Mindanao while the four others are known terrorists based in Basilan, a source told The STAR.
The source refused to identify the suspects yet, claiming that they are still validating the reports with their assets in the South to make sure that the case they would file in court would lead to a conviction.
Senior Superintendent Jiggs Coronel, head of the National Capital Region Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), said they have no definite suspects yet but are validating each report.
He refused to comment on reports that five Muslim bombers are behind the attack.
Coronel, a member of the Special Task Group Goldliner, said they are waiting for the results of the physical and forensic examination of the Crime Laboratory and the post-blast examination of the Explosives and Ordnance Division (EOD) to get a clear picture of the incident.
The STAR source claimed that the five Muslim suspects arrived in Metro Manila two weeks ago.
The bombers separately stayed in Muslim communities in Taguig City, Quezon City, Pasig City and Bulacan.
Police and military intelligence agents are also determining whether the suspects were also behind the stalled operations of the Metro Rail Transit in Cubao, Quezon City last week that MRT management claimed was caused by excessive supply of electricity.
"The group is sending a message to the Aquino government. That is why they timed the bus attack to coincide with the birthday of former President Cory Aquino," said the source.
The five bombers have since reportedly gone back to Mindanao.
Police and military agents are coordinating with airport and seaport officials to view of their CCTV cameras.
Investigators rushed to Jolo yesterday after an arrested Muslim rebel claimed that he knew who were behind the bus attack.
Investigators are eyeing the involvement of local Islamic militants in the bombing.
Military and police probers are also not ruling out the possibility that criminal syndicates could be behind the bombing.
Authorities are also investigating the possible connections of the recent bomb explosion in Maguindanao to the Makati bus bombing after fragments of a 60-mm mortar from an improvised explosive device (IED) were recovered by the military EOD team in Buluan town.
Maj. Charlie Escantilla, commander of the Army's 6th EOD team, said they are now comparing the bomb fragments recovered with that of the Makati bus blast.
The EOD team recovered last Thursday night the fragments of a 60-millimeter mortar, parts of a ruptured bag, and around 225 feet of stranded wire along the national highway at Barangay Digad in Buluan, Maguindanao.
Maguindanao provincial police director Senior Superintendent Marcelo Pintac told The STAR that police are in the process of determining the motive and identifying the group responsible for the incident.
Reports said a Rural Transit passenger bus passed through the area minutes before the explosion and investigators said they have to determine if it was really the bomb's target, though there were no casualties.
Makati's day of mourning
Makati Mayor Junjun Binay, NCRPO chief Bartolome and Makati police chief Senior Superintendent Froilan Bonifacio led yesterday the offering of a wreath, lighting of candles and offering of prayers for the victims of the bus bombing.
Declaring yesterday as the "Day of Mourning in Makati," Binay said the city government wants to show its sympathy to the families of the five passengers who were killed and the 13 others who were injured in the bombing. All city government offices had flags at half-mast.
Makati Rep. Monique Lagdameo, hundreds of policemen from the Makati police force and Southern Police District, and city hall employees offered flowers for the victims at the bombsite along EDSA.
Meanwhile, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) condemned the bus bombing, calling it "a most despicable act of violence" and conveyed sympathy to families of the victims.
The CPP described as fantastic the insinuations, which it claimed were made by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, that its armed wing, the New People's Army, or the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front were behind the bombing. - With Non Alquitran, Alexis Romero, Jose Rodel Clapano, Aie Balagtas See, Edu Punay, Jaime Laude, Rose Tamayo, Charlie Lagasca
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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