Cops who ‘saved’Pope from assassins saddened by illness

Policemen who thwarted an alleged 1995 attempt by Islamic extremists to assassinate Pope John Paul II in Manila joined fellow Filipinos in praying for the gravely ill pontiff.

They said the failed plot against the Pope enabled them to uncover other major terror plans.

Filipinos from all walks of life in the predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines have been praying fervently for the 84-year-old Pope, crowding churches during off-hours, lighting candles at home and calling radio stations to share their prayers.

President Arroyo, looking apprehensive, went on national television to say John Paul would continue to inspire the nation as it deals with a slew of problems. The Pope, who had visited the country twice, offered his prayers for the Philippines during natural disasters.

"Pope John Paul II has an endearing place in the hearts of millions of the Filipino faithful for the special care and attention he has shown us, and it saddens us all to hear the news of his grave condition," Mrs. Arroyo said.

"His serene courage and indomitable will remain a lasting source of our strength and hope as we face the trials and challenges of a troubled world."

The Pope drew huge, emotional crowds during his 1981 and 1995 visits. An estimated four million people jammed the Quirino Grandstand at Manila’s Rizal Park where he celebrated Mass for the World Youth Day in January 1995. He was scheduled to return two years ago for the World Meeting of Families, but the long voyage apparently was considered too taxing for his frail health.

A week before the Pope visited Manila in 1995, police officials said they stumbled upon a plan by Muslim militants, led by convicted 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef, to assassinate the pontiff using powerful explosives.

Yousef and his group rented an apartment in Manila along Roxas Boulevard where the Pope would pass.

But a fire erupted as Yousef mixed the bomb ingredients, drawing the attention of police. Yousef escaped, but one of his companions, Abdul Hakim Murad, was arrested.

Philippine National Police (PNP) Intelligence Group chief Director Robert Delfin, who helped oversee the Pope’s security, said they found in Yousef’s room large amounts of explosives as well as copies of the Bible, priests’ white cassocks and vestments that would have been used in the attack.

Delfin said the discovery of the plot "was a blessing" because other evidence in the room allowed authorities to uncover and thwart other terror plots, including the simultaneous bombing of US commercial airliners.

Murad also told interrogators of a plan to hijack a commercial plane that would be crashed into CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia — one of the first omens of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, he said.

"I feel sad seeing the news and seeing him in that condition," Delfin said of the Pope.

Delfin said he felt fulfilled that he once helped save the Pope’s life.

"I am very sad about his (Pope’s) health and if given a chance to save him again, I would not entertain a second thought... I would do it," Delfin said.

National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Deputy Director General Avelino Razon, who also oversaw security for the Pope in 1995, said the pontiff personally blessed him and other officers and gave each a rosary before he left Manila.

Razon said he placed the rosary in an altar in his home, where he also displayed his picture receiving the papal blessing.

"I feel sad," Razon said. "I have a personal attachment because of those events. I said a personal prayer (yesterday) morning, seeing the way his condition was deteriorating."

Carmela Meim Bataoil, daughter of PNP spokesman Senior Superintendent Leopoldo Bataoil, was a two-year-old toddler when she met the Pope who planted a kiss on her cheek in 1995.

Now 12 years old, Carmela says the experience, which occurred in front of Our Lady of Help of Christians Church at Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, is engraved in her mind.

"Gusto ko siyang gumaling (I want him to recover). I feel very sad but I also feel relaxed because I know he is going to a better place. If it’s really his time, I can’t do anything. I wish that he will keep on praying for us and we will keep praying for his recovery," Carmela said.

Carmela said she doesn’t know why she was the one picked by the Holy Father for a kiss on the cheek.

A picture taken with the Pope, she said, made her feel blessed. "Sabi nila, napaka-blessed ko dahil hinalikan ako ng Papa (My friends say that I was blessed because I was kissed by the Pope himself)," she said.

Carmela’s maternal uncle, Rev. Dennis Meim, who was then the parish priest of a church in Port Moresby visited by John Paul, said he was saddened by the turn of events.

‘Unforgettable’

For his part, former President Joseph Estrada’s political legislative liaison office head Jimmie Policarpio said the 1995 papal visit was one of the most unforgettable episodes in Filipino history.

Policarpio was tapped as the chief operating officer for World Youth day, an international gathering of young people from every continent and nation called annually by the Pope.

"We were able to help millions of faithful Filipinos catch a glimpse of the Pope without compromising the security of the Pope... We’ve made this sad event a very memorable one to all the attendees and the entire world who witnessed this very significant event," he said.

Policarpio recalled the Pope personally reached out for him and put his palm on his head while he knelt to kiss the papal ring.

He recalled feeling an "overwhelming sense of joy and peace" in his heart that caused him to burst into tears.

"I still pray and still am not losing hope that the Lord will perform another miracle on the present condition of His Holiness," Policarpio said.

Policarpio was one of very few people to gain a private audience with the Pope during his Manila visit, and he was chosen to receive communion.

He also had the privilege of visiting the Vatican and the Pope’s enclave following the success of the 1995 Manila papal visit. — Jaime Laudes