Enrile welcomes presidential probe on Martial Law
InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
MANILA, Philippines – Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile welcomed the initiative of the administration for the “all-out” investigation of Martial Law which he detailed in his recently launched book, Juan Ponce Enrile, A Memoir.
“Ako nga sinabi ko sa Presidente (Benigno Aquino III) na sumasang-ayon ako na imbestigahan ang buong martial law (I was the one who told the President that I agree to have the entire martial law period investigated),“ Enrile said.
The Senate chief said he has all the records and documents from his first day at the defense ministry to support what he wrote in his book on the period.
“I heard, gagawa ng komisyon si Presidente upang ungkatin ang Martial Law. Okey lamang iyon kasi nasa akin ang lahat ng records nang nangyari. Nasa akin, magmula noong 1970 nang pumasok ko sa Defense Department, kumpleto ang dokumentong kopya ko, na nasa library ko (I head that the President will create a commission that will dig into Martial Law. That's OK because all these are in my records of what happened. It's with me, from 1970 and until I joined the Defense Department, I have complete documentation. It's in my library),” he explained.
Enrile said he is ready to face any probe but requested that those who opposed Martial Law should also be called in order to have two-way flow of questioning regarding the events and incidents during the Marcos dictatorships.
“Handang-handa akong haharap doon, at paharapin din nila ang lumaban sa gobyerno upang magkaalaman na. Magtanungan at sasagutin ko ang tatanungin nila sa akin at sasagot nila ang tatanungin ko sa kanila (I am very ready to face them there, and those who fought government must also be there so that we will all know. They can ask me and I will answer their questions to me and they should answer my questions),” Enrile said.
Among the events being contested in Enrile's book was the Plaza Miranda bombing during the proclamation of Liberal Party candidates where scores of party members and ordinary people were hurt and several died.
“Tulad ng Plaza Miranda hindi naman fiction iyon, hindi naman kami gumawa noon. Tulad ng Cabugao fiesta massacre, tinanggal na nga nila iyon eh, maraming nasaktan, pati si Chavit Singson, nandyan buhay pa, hindi namin ginawa iyon. Marami iyan, maraming sundalong piñatay doon, hindi naman kami pumatay doon (As in the Plaza MIranda, that's not fiction, we did not stage it then. Like the Cabugao fiesta massacre, they already took that out, and so many were wounded, including Chavit Singson, who is still alive, we did not do that. There are many more, many soldiers were wounded then, and we were not the ones who killed there),” he said.
