Palace to wait for investigation results on Jolo shooting incident

Malacañang said it would wait for the results of the investigation on the shooting incident involving policemen and soldiers in Jolo, Sulu on Monday before making a conclusion about the matter.

At a televised briefing on Tuesday, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the Palace would let the National Bureau of Investigation finish its probe.

“I will not make any conclusions sa ngayon po hanggang hindi po natatapos ang imbestigasyon ng NBI,” he said.

Roque also said President Rodrigo Duterte may visit the soldiers who died in the incident.

“If he can, he will pero I am not at liberty po to say kung kailan talaga ang bisita ng President sa Jolo obviously for security reasons,” he said.

The military earlier said four soldiers, who were conducting intelligence operations, were tracking the location of reported suicide bombers under the group of Mundi Sawajaan in coordination with the Joint-Task Force Sulu and the 11th Infantry Division in Jolo.

They were flagged down by cops and asked them to proceed to the police station to further verify their identities.

Police claimed that the soldiers escaped, prompting them to chase the troops. They also said the men pointed their firearms at the police officers. However, before they could pull the trigger, the police were able to shoot them allegedly in self-defense.

“Siguro let’s be fair. Hot spot po talaga ang Jolo ngayon, patuloy ang aktibidades ng mga terorista diyan. Tingin ko po medyo nag-iingat at medyo mataas ang tensyon diyan sa area na ‘yan,” Roque said.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año on Monday ordered the police officers involved in the killing of the soldiers disarmed and placed them under the custody of the Sulu provincial police director.

The Armed Forces, meanwhile, maintained that no exchange of gunfire transpired on  Monday’s incident.  — RSJ, GMA News