There are two very crucial points which must be clarified by
police and military officials to prove that the death of 13 people at a
checkpoint in Atimonan, Quezon was a shootout and not a rubout.
A story in inquirer.net said according to NBI sources, uniformed
police at the first checkpoint allowed suspected jueteng lord Vic Siman and his
convoy of three sports utility vehicles to pass without stopping them.
If indeed there had been reports that Siman was leading a group of
guns-for-hire and other criminals, WHY WERE THEY NOT STOPPED?
The NORMAL procedure would have
been to stop Siman’s group and surround them at the first checkpoint.
The soldiers and policemen could have positioned themselves around
the first checkpoint to ensure that Siman’s group would be surrounded the
moment they arrived.
Marantan is supposed to be a senior police officer and a VETERAN
of operations like the Atimonan incident. It would be HIGHLY SUSPICIOUS if he
will say he had overlooked that basic procedure.
But the policemen and soldiers DID NOT DO THAT and let Siman’s
group through instead. So WHY DID THEY RISK the possibility of Siman’s group
ESCAPING after the first checkpoint by whatever means?
Like making a u-turn or swerving off the road? Why did they have
to stop Siman’s group ONLY at the second checkpoint?
And if Siman’s group was indeed stopped at the second checkpoint, it
would have been TOTALLY ILLOGICAL for them to open fire first since they would
have seen that they were OVERWHELMINGLY OUTNUMBERED.
Besides, Siman’s companion police Supt. Alfredo Consemino would
have gotten off the vehicle and identified himself to his colleagues. He would
have readily asked the cops and soldiers at the checkpoint if there’s a problem
to avoid any untoward incident.
I knew and encountered quite a number of senior police and
military officers during my media days. And all of them were one in saying that
the very first thing guys like them want to avoid is a shootout.
Especially with their COMRADES-IN-ARMS.
Earlier, published false reports had claimed that Malacanang had
approved the Atimonan checkpoint. Other reports said up to P100 million in cash
and gold which Siman’s group had been transporting were not turned over to
investigators as evidence.
One thing I’ll tell you, boys and girls: This controversy is MUCH
DEEPER than we think it is. 30
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