Binay cries foul on Palace, PNP attempt to politicize Glorietta 2 blast

Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay cried foul Thursday on the statements of Presidential Legal Counsel Sergio Apostol and Southern Police District (SPD) chief Luizo Ticman over the Glorietta mall 2 blast last October 19. Apostol and Ticman had said that the Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), owner of the explosion-hit mall, and the City Hall officials should be held responsible for the tragedy if indeed the blast was caused a gas leak. “The statements of Apostol and General Ticman reek of politics. It leads me to believe that the police and Malacañang have already made up their minds and they will now use this issue for political purposes," Binay said. Binay said Apostol and Ticman’s statements bolster his proposal for the creation of two independent fact-finding bodies to look into the cause of the blast. “We need two fact-finding bodies that are competent and impartial. As this stand, Malacañang has already made a public statement that this explosion was caused by a gas leak. Can we expect the underlings to say otherwise even if the investigation is far from conclusive?" Binay pointed out. He said one of the two fact-finding bodies can assess the response of the government to the incident and determine if the chain of command was followed. He said the other fact-finding bodies can look into the cause of the explosion. “I will ask the private sector for its help in creating these two bodies. It is in the best interest not only of Makati and the private sector, but of the entire country that the investigation be seen as impartial and competent" Binay said. Binay said the conflicting and at times illogical statements coming from the Philippine National Police (PNP) do not inspire confidence. “The people are looking for a conclusive and credible result. Whatever the cause of the blast, if the process of finding out the truth is conducted in a professional and impartial manner, the people will accept it. As things stand, people remain highly skeptical about the findings of the PNP" Binay said. - GMANews.TV