Stories of the heroic deeds of the 44 slain police commandos should be repeatedly retold to the next generations to inspire courage and patriotism, Police Lt. Gen. Guillermo L. Eleazar, deputy chief for operations of the Philippine National Police, said on fifth anniversary of the Mamasapano clash in Maguindanao yesterday.
Eleazar said that the bravery displayed by the 44 commandos of the Special Action Force on Jan. 25, 2015 is a modern day version of how Filipino fighters and heroes died for the love of their country.
“Our SAF 44 heroes did not die in vain. Had it not for them, Marwan would have mobilized more extremists to terrorize the Filipino people. Had it not for them, more innocent civilians would have killed by their bombs,” said Eleazar in a speech at the SAF headquarters in Taguig City.
The slain SAF commandos were on the mission to take out Malaysian Zulkifli Bin Hir, alias “Marwan,” who was monitored to be hiding in a remote area in Mamasapano.
Marwan was tagged as responsible for training Filipinos in urban terrorism and making Improvised Explosive Devices, which were later used in the series of bomb attacks especially in Mindanao.
The bomb-making style of Marwan was still monitored in the recent bomb attacks in Mindanao.
The killing of Marwan during the SAF mission came with a big price as it led to the death of the 44 police commandos when local fighters joined the fray in attacking them.
“During the early times, the exploits of the warriors are honored by songs, poems, and stories that were passed on from one generation to the next generation,” said Eleazar. “Allow me then to immortalize the heroic deeds our SAF 44 through their story that hopefully you would untiringly tell and retell to your children and grandchildren in honor of our fallen brothers,” he added.
Eleazar recounted how the SAF commandos successfully carried out the mission assigned to them, as well as the stories of how the 44 slain commandos stood their ground despite being trapped, outnumbered, and outgunned.
“Once upon a time, a large group of elite police commandos were called upon to perform an impossible task of penetrating an enemy stronghold in a remote area of Mamasapano in Maguindanao to bring justice to the Muslim and Christian civilians who died from the bombs made by international terrorist Marwan,” said Eleazar.
“An impossible task in the sense that there is only one way in and one way out from a fully-armed community with the mentality of killing outsiders who would dare to cross their paths. An impossible task in the sense that those police commandos had limited firepower and resources to ensure their safety.”
“But an impossible task that was made possible by the Special Action Force,” Eleazar stressed.
The fifth anniversary of the “SAF 44” was held amid the junking of the cases leveled before the Sandiganbayan against the key players in the mission – former PNP chief Police Gen. Alan L.M. Purisima and former SAF director Police Major Gen. Getulio Napenas.
Amid this development that saddened the relatives of the SAF 44 and the police commandos themselves, Eleazar said that the government had been giving what is due to them.
“Our beloved President Rodrigo Roa Duterte did his part in honoring our SAF 44 heroes by giving what is due to them – by making all of them recipients of the coveted Medalya ng Kagitingan or Medal of Valor,” said Eleazar.
Eleazar said that PNP chief Police Gen. Archie Gamboa has assured full support not only to the relatives of the 44 fallen police commandos but also to the SAF as an institution itself through procurement of modern firepower and other mission-essential equipment. (Aaron Recuenco)