PNP News Releases 2005

LOMIBAO ECHOES PALACE CALL FOR PASAGE ON ANTI-TERROR BILL

PNP Chief, Director General Arturo C Lomibao today echoed the call of President Arroyo on Congress to pass the anti-terrorism bill to give the police a better fighting chance to proactively address threats.

Lomibao said although the police has the capability to address the threats of terrorism, there are still some windows of opportunity that terrorists may take advantage of.

The PNP has adapted the Three-Tiered Defense System against terrorism that combines intelligence, target-hardening, and incident management approaches to anticipate, prepare for, and handle incidents of terrorism.

However, Lomibao said, the maximum efficiency of our anti-terrorism defense system, ideally, should be anchored on a firm legal foundation which is provided for under the pending bill.

“Our existing criminal laws, to some extent, have been adequate in addressing criminality issues. However, these laws may not be totally effective in addressing the threats of terrorism,” Lomibao said.

He said the latest incident in the resort province of Bali, Indonesia, should open our eyes to the grim reality that the threat of terrorism poses.

“It is unfortunate that some sectors are entirely missing the point and view the anti-terrorism bill with some degree of indifference, Lomibao said.

Terrorists have staged several attacks in Manila and other parts of the Philippines. The Rizal Day bombing incidents in 2000 and the Valentine's Day bombings in February this year left scores of killed and injured victims.

“The fact is that there are domestic and transnational terrorist organizations operating in the country that have been actually committing acts of terrorism and continue to espouse terrorism as means to achieve their objectives,” Lomibao said.