'Nothing new in latest Mamasapano hearing'

The discussions during the reopened Mamasapano hearing on Wednesday will not change the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drug's report last year.

Senator Grace Poe, the chairperson of the committee, made this pronouncement to close the hearing, which lasted nearly seven hours.

“Walang naiibang (detalye na) makapagpabago pa sa committee report,” Poe said as she closed the hearing, which started around 10 a.m. and ended before 5 p.m.

She added that old issues were discussed during the hearing.

“Marami tayong napag-usapan ngunit 'yan ay napag-usapan na rin noon. Nabigyan lang natin ng respeto at pagkakataon ang isang senador na magtanong dahil wala siya noong mga unang pagdinig,” she said.

“Kung titignan natin yung mga basehan na sagot na yun, wala naman talagang mga nasabi na maaring magpalit ng aming committee report pero nalinawan ang mga bagay na ito,” she added, referring to the eight points that Enrile claimed he will raise to prove President Benigno Aquino III's liability in the Mamasapano mission.

Enrile enumerated the eight points before starting his questioning during the early part of the hearing.

These were:

• Aquino actively, directly participated in the planning and preparation of Oplan Exodus
• Aquino deliberately compartmented Oplan Exodus to himself and then suspended Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima
• Aquino was the approving authority
• Aquino was fully aware of what was going on during the Mamasapano mission
• Aquino blatantly disregarded command systems of the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines
• Aquino intentionally and directly dealt with the person who before and at the time was not an active part of the command system of either the AFP and the PNP
• Aquino did not do anything to prevent the SAF 44's killing
• Aquino shielded himself from any accountability and deliberately hid behind Purisima

Satisfied with the hearing

Enrile, in a separate interview, said he was satisfied with the hearing and will no longer ask for another one.

"Tama na yun. I have established already the responsibility of the President... compartmentation. In-assume niya yung responsibilidad at walang pakialam yung mga iba," he said.

He added that his focus was really the responsibility and accountability of the President.

On the claim that President Aquino was misinformed of what was happening on the ground that time, the senator said the state leader has a big intelligence fund under his command.

"Kalaki-laki ng intelligence fund nila bakit hindi nila nalalalaman yung nangyayari sa kanila, sa mga tauhan nila sa field," he said.

Asked what will happen next, Enrile replied: "Bahala na sila. Let the law enforcement people do the job in the future."

Compartmentalizing the mission

In accusing Aquino of compartmentalizing the Mamasapano mission, Enrile said: “To understand this, when I say compartmented Oplan Exodus, I mean that President Aquino intentionally, deliberately, and actually confined and arrogated unto himself and Purisima full knowledge, command and control, and strategic decisions over Oplan Exodus.” 

He said Aquino “excluded all others including members of his Cabinet except Secretary (Mar) Roxas and the command system of the PNP (Philippine National Police) and AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines). He left everything to himself and his trusted man Purisima.”

He was later corrected by former SAF chief Director Getulio Napeñas that Roxas was also excluded from Oplan Exodus.

Also at the hearing, Enrile said Aquino shielded himself from the controversial mission. 

But Communications Sec. Herminio Coloma Jr., in a text message, said that "President Aquino has always acted responsibly and faced squarely all matters pertaining to the Mamasapano incident." 

Ultimately responsible

Based on the committee report last year, Aquino was "ultimately responsible" for the outcome of the Mamasapano mission to neutralize Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan on Jan. 25, 2015.

Forty-four SAF members were killed in the mission. To date, no formal charges have been filed against those responsible for the deaths of the elite police commandos —ALG/RSJ/JST, GMA News