Arroyo noted that two weeks after the mysterious disappearance of Dacer and his driver Manuel Corbito, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has remained clueless.
"An independent investigation would help a lot. Imagine, it’s been two weeks already and they’ve (Dacer relatives) had only their first meeting with the NBI. It’s really a delay. If there’s a private investigator, things can be made faster," she said.
She also said former President Fidel Ramos has already requested the NBI to assign a person who will concentrate solely on the Dacer case.
The NBI reportedly said it has been working on the case but its investigation has been hampered by lack of equipment.
In her weekly radio program, Arroyo suggested that the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force should offer its resources to the NBI since the PAOCTF has the biggest purse among government intelligence agencies.
"PAOCTF should offer full service because it has the equipment ... it has the biggest budget," she said in her program which had as guests the missing PR man’s daughters Ampy Henson and Karina Dacer.
Meanwhile, Sen. Gregorio Honasan has joined the search for Dacer, a fellow Bicolano whom he calls "Manoy Bubby."
Honasan offered full security protection to any witness who could furnish his office information on the whereabouts of the PR executive and his driver.
"I appeal to those concerned not to be afraid in coming forward and relaying what they know about Manoy Bubby’s abduction," Honasan said in a statement yesterday.
Honasan noted that various law enforcement agencies working on the case are still facing a blank wall due to the lack of information from witnesses on the circumstances of the abduction despite huge rewards put up by some government officials.
The NBI earlier released cartographic sketches of the suspects who reportedly abducted Dacer and his driver last Nov. 24 along South Super Highway.
"His disappearance is indeed a cause for alarm not only because he is a respected PR man but because he is a private citizen," he noted.
Honasan expressed concern over the slow progress in the investigation and urged police and other law enforcement agencies to work triple time on the case by tapping all their available resources and contacts.
"While we understand the intricacies of working on such cases, some sectors especially the Dacer family can’t help but be distressed by the apparent slow progress of the investigation especially now that two weeks have elapsed," he said. – Liberty Dones, Perseus Echeminada