AFP, PNP still on high alert

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) will remain on high alert in Metro Manila despite the end of the Christmas season yesterday.

Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero and Senior Superintendent Joel Goltiao, spokespersons of the AFP and the PNP, respectively, said that as majority of the labor force report for work today, the high alert level remains enforced, which means continued enforcement of police visibility, beat patrol and mobile checkpoints.

Lucero and Goltiao said this will be part of the regular operations of both the PNP and the AFP as both agencies were tapped by President Arroyo to address the peace and order situation in Metro Manila.

Citing a report from Director Robert Delfin, chief of the PNP Directorate for Intelligence, Goltiao assured the public that there is no specific threat from terror groups believed to be operating in the country.

"There are no actual threats from terror groups," Goltiao said.

Meanwhile, Lucero said that the AFP will remain steadfast in its anti-terror campaign focused primarily on hunting down members of the Jemaah Islamiyah, a terror network linked to international terrorist Osama Bin Laden.

"The concentration of the operations against JI remains in Central Mindanao, and we are very grateful that the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has offered help in tracking them down. We are banking on their sincerity," Lucero said.