Parlade apologizes for remark vs reporter

MANILA, Philippines — National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) spokesman Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. yesterday apologized to journalist Tetch Torres-Tupas, whom he hinted at suing for reporting about a petition against the Anti-Terrorism Act in the Supreme Court (SC).

In an interview on ANC, Parlade said he is sorry for making Tupas feel afraid for her safety.

“Just to assure Ms. Tupas that we mean no harm on her, yeah, I’d like to say sorry to those circulating in the news that I am threateninng her. I am not,” Parlade said.

When asked what he was apologizing for, the chief of the Southern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said he did not intend to threaten the reporter.

“It’s being made to appear that Tetch fears my statement. That is also because of the way the media portrays this issue. But personally, I don’t intend for Tetch to feel that way,” Parlade replied in a mix of English and Filipino.

In a Facebook post last week, Parlade called Tupas a “propagandist” and hinted of possible legal action against the journalist for her report about two tortured Aetas who sought help from the SC.

On Monday, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana tasked newly-installed AFP chief, Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, to look into the issue and investigate if disciplinary action should be imposed against Parlade.

For his part, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said that Parlade’s remarks were careless and insensitive, and advised the military official to refrain from talking about terrorism.

“If Lt. Gen. Parlade wants to help enlighten the magistrates as he claims, he can do it better by not talking about terrorism,” Lacson noted. – Cecille Suerte Felipe, Paolo Romero