ILOILO City – The Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) has declared a full alert status following the bombing incident at a Catholic church in Jolo, Sulu on Sunday morning.
PRO-6 spokeswoman Superintendent Joem Malong said the full alert status order was from Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde.
“Actually, we are already in full alert with the recent Dinagyang Festival,” added Malong. “But we have already ordered other provinces to be in full alert, too.”
The twin blast at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral on Jan. 27 killed at least 21 persons and hurt more than 100 others.
Malong said the police chiefs and intelligence personnel have already been ordered to coordinate closely with the community and other stakeholders.
“We are now intensifying our intelligence monitoring,” she stressed. “Information from the community is a big help for us…It’s better to be ready and alert.”
Malong added that PRO-6 personnel have also been coordinating with the Muslim community. A meeting with them is set every three months.
“We have a good relationship with our Muslim brothers and they assured to help us,” Malong said.
Meanwhile, the PNP is looking into three persons of interest in the deadly blast.
Albayalde said one of them was identified as Kamah, who was seen wearing a blue green jacket along with two others near the cathedral, based on a closed circuit television (CCTV) footage.
Kamah belongs to the Abu Sayyaf subgroup called Ajang-Ajang, which was earlier tagged by the military as the one behind the blast.
“Ajang-ajang, walang pinag-iba sa Abu Sayyaf. Ginamit ng Abu Sayyaf na mga bata ang edad. Naulila, napatay ng militar ‘yung ibang kamag-anak,” Albayalde said in a television interview on Tuesday.
The PNP chief did not disclose any further details regarding Kamah’s identity but a radio report said he is a brother of slain Abu Sayyaf leader Surakah Ingog.
“Alias lang alam natin, the true name [is still] unknown. Sinabi ng imbestigador, alam ng members of community dahil dyan nakatira,” Albayalde added.
He also said they have yet to establish whether the item Kamah was trying to pass to his companion was the trigger for the bombs.
The man was seen giving something to his companion wearing a cap and holding a bag but they were abruptly cut when the first blast occurred.
Another CCTV footage showed the man was able to pass the item to his companion.
Panic ensued and the people started running away, including the three men. However, the man in blue green jacket ran in an opposite direction.
Kamah was said to be the one who detonated the bombs.
Albayalde has appealed to residents of Jolo to inform the authorities about the real identity of Kamah and his two other companions. (With a report from PNA/PN)
