Makabayan solons: Why the haste to blame Sagay massacre on NPA?

Progressive lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Monday questioned Malacañang's tagging the New People's Army (NPA) as the perpetrators of the massacre in Sagay City, Negros Occidental without a complete investigation.

"Alam naman natin na unang araw pa lang ng massacre, nagpahayag na ang Malacañang at tinuro na nila na CPP-NPA ang responsable kahit wala pang seryosong imbestigasyon na nagaganap. At ngayon nakikita na natin na talagang tinutuloy nila yung ganitong script," ACT Teachers party-list Representative Antonio Tinio, speaking for the Makabayan Bloc, said in a press conference.

"Ang gusto nila ay sisihin ang mga biktima mismo sa sarili nilang massacre," he added.

The military had said that the murdered farmers were new recruits of the National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW), which it has accused of being a front organization for the NPA and the Communist Party of the Philippines.

Tinio added that the authorities are blaming the NPA to justify their "script" that the communists are planning to oust President Rodrigo Duterte.

"As we have been stressing in the past weeks, the CPP has been hatching plans to oust the Duterte Administration and this incident is part of their plan to rouse civil unrest and discredit the government," the military said in a statement last week.

In a radio interview last Monday, presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo also blamed the killing of the farmers on the CPP and NPA.

"Lumalabas sa imbestigasyon ay mga grupo ng CPP-NPA sapagka't iyong mga biktima at saka iyong mga nandoon, nakilala nila iyong mga ibang naroroon sa … iyong gumawa ng pag-massacre. Pangalawa, tila sila ay mayroong threat doon sa grupong iyon," he said.

"Whatever the reasons may be, ang nakikita sa imbestigasyon ay iyong CPP-NPA ang nasa likod ng massacre," he added.

The Philippine National Police also tagged the NPA rebels as responsible for the massacre.

Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Zarate slammed authorities for coming up with this conclusion, especially as the investigations are not yet finished.

"Hindi pa tapos ang imbestigasyon nila pero nandiyan na agad ang kongklusyon na ang nag-massacre dito ay ang NPA. Malinaw na lumalabas ngayon na meron nang tahasang whitewash at cover-up sa nangyayari sa Sagay," he said.

"Sa halip na bigyan sila ng hustisya, ay ginagamit ang insidenteng ito para atakihin ang organisasyon na kanilang kinabibilangan at para lalong ipaliwanag pa 'yung script ng Red October," he said.

Gabriela Women's Party Representative Arlene Brosas said that the authorities should also investigate those who may have motives to kill the farmers, including the landowners and guns for hire.

According to Brosas, the nine slain farmers were land claimants in Hacienda Nene, which they had been tilling for the longest time.

"Bakit hindi imbestigahan ang land owners? Sila ang may-ari, sila ang ayaw magbigay ng lupa," she said.

"Bakit hindi imbestigahan yung RPA, o yung mga gun-for-hire doon sa Negros? Dahil marami doon na nagsasabi at nagpapatunay na merong mga ganitong kaso na binabayaran yung mga armed elements para pumatay ng iba," she added.

The Makabayan Bloc has already filed a resolution at the House of Representatives seeking investigation into the bloody incident. — BM, GMA News