The Biggest Story of 2017

The biggest story of 2017 is that the Duterte administration knew in advance about the Marawi attack, did nothing to prevent it, and the Senate has refused to investigate the most significant terror attack in Southeast Asia in 15 years.

How is this even possible? 

How is it possible that Duterte, Lorenzana, and Calida can all confess and admit publicly in the media and even testify before the Supreme Court that they knew about the Marawi attack, did nothing to prevent it, in fact allowed weapons to flow unabated into the area, and there be no national outrage? Where is the political opposition? Where is the media opposition? Where are the voices in the blogosphere? Where are the whistleblowers?  Why is there only silence?

How can the Senate get away with not investigating the most significant terror attack in SEA in 15 years? It is beyond outrageous that the Senate has investigated two homicides, shabu smuggling, and fake news and yet sees no importance in getting to the bottom of what happened and why it happened in Marawi. A continual refusal to investigate the causes of the Marawi siege and how to prevent such an event from reoccurring means any overtures from Congress about the safety of the country is bovine scatology.

The Congress does not care about the safety of the Philippines. Allowing China to build military bases in the SCS, pushing for an Islamic State which will be governed by the terrorist groups MILF and MNLF, and refusing to investigate the Marawi attack are all proof that Congress does not care about the safety of the Philippines or Filipinos.

You know I hope some Senator reads this, gets offended, and sues me. Then all this information can finally get the attention it deserves!

What follows is a copy/paste of all the points I have raised in a former article which details the Duterte administrations admissions of prior knowledge of the Marawi attack.  

Here are the facts of the matter for all those Senators who seem to not know the facts of the matter surrounding Marawi.

1. The government knew about these attacks in April and knew as early as 2014 that ISIS was establishing itself in the country.

https://www.rappler.com/nation/172777-isis-military-marawi-crisis-martial-law-calida 

In the comment, Calida said the government had known as early as 2014 that there were links to ISIS being established by local groups in Mindanao. This is contrary to the stance taken by government at the time, under former president Benigno Aquino III: there is no ISIS in the Philippines.

"AFP intelligence reports disclose that as early as April 18, 2017, Abdullah Maute had dispatched his followers to the cities of Marawi, Iligan, and Cagayan de Oro to conduct bombing operations, carnapping, and 'liquidation' of AFP and PNP personnel in the said areas."

2. There was no failure of intelligence since the AFP and DND knew weapons were moving into the area.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/06/18/1711130/no-failure-intelligence-marawi

Duterte said the government was aware that firearms were being stockpiled in Mindanao but took it for granted because of the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).  

“We have adopted a very soft policy towards the rebels and this came about because they were bringing firearms. Since we are thinking of getting peace with the MNLF and MILF. The game there involves firearms. We took it for granted. We just allowed it to happen because we never knew until that time who was really the enemy,” Duterte told the troops in Butuan City.  

“When they see firearms and they were told that it’s for MILF or MNLF, the standing order was maybe we can talk to our brothers so there will be no trouble (but) it turned out that the Maute were bringing the firearms surreptitiously and we did not know how much ammunition and firearms were stockpiled, and besides it was not a failure of intelligence,” he added. 

3. Despite knowing all this Duterte and his top men took a trip to Russia just a few hours before the attack was launched.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/612764/palace-defends-huge-delegation-to-russia-everybody-was-necessary/story/

The list of Duterte’s official delegation to Russia sent to the media had 19 names, including Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Cayetano, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, and Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial. 

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Science and Technology Secretary Fortunano dela Peña, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Special Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go, and Senator Sherwin Gatchalian were also part of the official delegation. 

But police chief Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Armed Forces chief Gen. Eduardo Año, and Communications Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson also joined the President’s official visit.

4. Duterte changed the narrative regarding how the Marawi siege happened. First it was a botched raid against Abu Sayyaf leader Hapilon.

https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/in-depth/171245-marawi-crisis-isis-plan-bautista

Now the reason is that a warrant was being served against a powerful and unnamed drug lord.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/09/27/1743196/duterte-now-claims-arrest-warrant-vs-drug-lord-triggered-marawi-siege

5. The DND was given foreign intelligence reports which they failed to verify despite having their own intelligence that ISIS was building up since 2014 and that Marawi was a known target since a month before the actual attack.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/07/27/1722033/dnd-admits-lack-intel-validation-marawi-siege

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana admitted that there was a lack of validation on the government side regarding intelligence reports on the siege in Marawi City. 

Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore have earlier warned the Philippines of the possible presence of ISIS-inspired local terror groups in the country, according to a report from UNTV. 

Lorenzana said that the incident in Marawi City would serve as a lesson for the Department of National Defense and the military to validate intelligence reports. 

"Maybe what we can do in the future is restudy what we are doing [in the] intelligence sector... so that we can be better prepared if something like this happens again," Lorenzana said.

It is in this same news article where Lorenzana is quoted as saying:

"The time of blaming somebody or pointing somebody is past that, ito na nga nangyari. We can no longer bring back the lives of those 110 people killed, 900 wounded," Lorenzana said.

Lorenzana could not be more wrong. 

There must be an investigation into the prior knowledge of the Marawi attack.  Can you imagine if there was no investigation into the attacks of September 11, 2001?  Can you imagine if Defense Secretary Rumsfeld said the time of blaming somebody is past and hinted that an investigation into the largest terror attack in United States was unnecessary?  That is exactly what is happening now.  

Senator Poe thinks there is a cover-up in the hazing death of UST student Horacio Castillo Jr.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/09/26/1742882/poe-there-cover-attempt-hazing-victim-case

There is an even bigger cover-up occurring in this matter of the government's prior knowledge of the Marawi attack. No one, no Senator, no Congressman, no journalist, no blogger, NO ONE has called for an investigation into this matter despite so much damning information being a part of the public record.

The time for an investigation is now. Duterte recognises the danger terrorism poses to the country.  He has even warned that more cities will be consumed with the fury of war. Is the Senate prepared to allow that to happen?  Is the Senate prepared to ignore the failures which led to Marawi and allow them to perpetuate? Is the Senate prepared to let those responsible for allowing the Marawi attacks to happen to not be held accountable? Is the Senate prepared to have the blood of hundreds, thousands, millions, on their hands because they failed to investigate this matter?

Why is there silence on this matter?  What is the Senate afraid of?

Investigate the prior knowledge of the Marawi attack now!