Finally, a breakthrough. Amid grumblings about the government's failure to catch the people behind the bombing of two shopping malls in Metro Manila, the Philippine National Police announced last Sunday that a Manila policeman and 25 alleged members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front had been arrested in connection with the attacks. The news was met with relief by the public, and the PNP deserves commendation for this accomplishment -- if it bagged the right suspects.
The MILF leadership has denied the group's involvement in the bombings in Metro Manila, adding that those arrested did not belong to the group. The denial is to be expected from a group that is resuming peace negotiations with the government today. What raised suspicions, however, was the PNP itself. Days before the arrests, PNP chief Panfilo Lacson told a press conference telecast live nationwide that suspects in the bombings had been identified, and they were rightists with a political agenda. At the same press conference, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado contradicted this theory, saying the bombings appeared to be the handiwork of Muslim rebels.
All rightist and political groups that felt alluded to raised a howl. When Lacson finally presented the suspects last Sunday, he explained that he deliberately misled the press to throw off the PNP's real targets. This was part of intelligence operations, he explained, and if Mercado didn't know better about keeping classified information to himself, tough luck.
If Lacson was trying to throw off the real suspects, Mercado, whose military intelligence units were also at work on the bombings, surely provided all Muslims ample warning. Next time, instead of using the media as unwitting tools of intelligence operations, it may be simpler for the PNP leadership to withhold comment on sensitive matters. It may be even better to avoid altogether press conferences telecast live nationwide.
The PNP should be congratulated for catching people suspected of making life miserable for the people of Metro Manila. That bit of deliberate deception on the part of the PNP chief, however, has now raised a disturbing question: If he can blatantly mislead the public once, what will stop him from misleading the public again? Whatever the answer, it's not yet time to let down one's guard. Be on alert. Vigilance is the price of freedom -- and safety.