Lanao del Sur solon: No need for martial law in Marawi

Lanao del Sur lawmaker Zia Adiong said Monday that the government should not resort to the imposition of martial law in Marawi City in the aftermath of the Mindanao State University (MSU) bombing that killed four people and injured several others on Sunday morning, saying that doing so would only make things worse. 

“No, we should not [resort to martial law]. We should not resort to that because we do not want to cause unnecessary panic. The more kasi na mag-panic tayo, it’s also a sign na hindi tayo in control of everything," Adiong told reporters in a chance interview.

(The more we panic, it’s a sign that we are not in control of everything.)

“It should be the opposite. We have to be confident that based on the operations that our military conducted a couple of years ago, the numbers of these terrorists dwindled,” Adiong added, referring to the five-month siege of Marawi against Maute terrorists that left the city in ruins and more than a thousand people dead.

Under the Philippine Constitution, martial law can be imposed by the president for 60 days at maximum in case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it. Congress can either approve or reject such proclamation by a vote of at least a majority of all its Members in regular or special session, may revoke such proclamation or suspension.

The Constitution also provides that the Congress may, in the same manner, extend such proclamation or suspension for a period to be determined by the Congress, if the invasion or rebellion shall persist and public safety requires it.

Beyond military force

Adiong explained that dealing with terrorists is not just about staging military action but also fortifying civilian defense interventions.
 

“Civilian support is very important ang civilian support [in order for us] to fight terrorism. Because you don’t have the support of the community, even if you pour down all your effort in the military course of action, it would remain tough because we’re dealing with ideological warfare eh,” Adiong said.
 

“This is not a case of if one dies, these terrorists will be gone. You need the support of the community, by pressing on the community na everything is not in order, na hindi natin kaya, so that we declare again ng martial law, that in a way is a message to the community na hindi natin kaya ito so kailangan natin mag-extra effort, which may cause unnecessary panic,” Adiong added.

So what we need to do is based on the experience we accomplished after the Marawi siege, we need to win the people’s support, we need to win sympathies.  One [way to do it] is to communicate the message, win the support of the public, because the only way for us to secure our streets, is to make the civilians our partner in policing their community,” Adiong added.

During the Christmas tree lighting ceremny at the Batasang Pambansa, Speaker Martin Romualdez assured that the House of Representatives will stand for peace and comfort of communities, especially after the Marawi city bombing.

“The recent tragedy in Marawi and the earthquake in Surigao are stark reminders that our work is not yet done, that the task of bridging divisions, providing security and comfort to our countrymen and paving the way for enlightened unity continues. Across the world, there is a creeping darkness – darkness which can only be overcome by brightly-burning lights,” Romualdez said.

“Let tonight’s tree lighting ceremony stand as a symbol of our continuing commitment. That we, at the House of Representatives, as a nation-loving institution, will not waver, that we will remain steadfast in our solemn duty to be shining lights for peace, comfort, security, understanding and unity for our countrymen,” Romualdez added.

In addition, the Speaker expressed support for the resumption of the peace talks between the government and the communist rebels, as well as assured aid to the victims of the 7.4 magnitude earthquake in Surigao del Sur.

“We 100 percent support our President’s policy in the peace talks and it is also a perfect timing, it is Christmas, it is the time for peace, and that is what we all want this season,” Romualdez said.

—RF, GMA Integrated News