Philippine military leadership denies move to oust Aquino

Source:Xinhua Published: 2015-2-12 17:53:19

The Philippine military leadership denied Thursday any coup plot against President Benigno S. Aquino III, whose leadership is being rocked by the tragic death of 44 police commandos on the hands of alleged Muslim rebel group whom his administration is currently engaged on a peace process.

Harold Cabunoc, public information chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), said that based on initial consultation with ground commanders, "we have not received any feedback confirming the reports which were spread by some quarters."

He also said that the AFP leadership has established an " excellent" monitoring system where troop movements and suspicious activities were directly reported to the leaders along the military's chain of command.

"The AFP has brought to bear so much lessons learned from previous experiences both good and bad that matured the AFP into what it is now, a highly professional organization dedicated to its mandated constitutional duty where coup rumors and recruitment will find no place," Cabunoc said.

Talks on coup plot to oust Aquino came following the tragic encounter between the police Special Action Force commandos and alleged combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest Muslim rebel group in the country, in Mamasapano town, southern Philippine province of Maguindanao on Jan. 25, resulting the death of 44 police troopers.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr., in a news briefing in Malacanang, the presidential palace, expressed confidence that the AFP as an institution is ready to prevent or quell all enemies of the state.

Several investigations have been ongoing to determine what really took place on Jan. 25 and to hold responsible those involved in the tragedy.

Posted in: Asia-Pacific

blog comments powered by Disqus