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| 20 OCTOBER 2007 | ||
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| 20 OCTOBER 2007 | ||
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| PGMA visits blast victims at Makati Med |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo motored last
night to the Makati Medical Center in Makati City to look into the condition
of shoppers wounded in the explosion that rocked the Glorietta shopping mall
earlier in the day. The President, whose convoy left Malacanang at 6:55 p.m., entered the back entrance of the hospital, and was met by Health Secretary Francisco Duque and Social Welfare Secretary Esperanza Cabral. She was immediately ushered into the Corporate Health and Wellness Center where she met two blast victims -- Henry Montenegro of Bangkal, Makati, and Jeffrey Burce. Montenegro and Burce were among those slightly wounded in the explosion. Still wearing the black dress she wore during her televised address to the nation on the heinous attack, the Chief Executive proceeded later to MMC’s Emergency Room where two seriously injured patients, both sedated, were being operated on. The President’s next stop was a patient on the ninth floor; before she went down to the ground floor, and later to the second floor to visit other blast victims in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). In her televised address in Malacañang five hours after the blast at about 1:30 p.m., the President ordered the Philippine National Police (PNP) to conduct a full-blown investigation on the explosion. She also placed the police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on “highest alert to prevent a possible similar occurrence.” She likewise warned “those who seek to destabilize our government not to exploit” the incident for their selfish political motives. |
| President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's Opening Statement at the Command Conference at Camp Crame, Quezon City |
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Mga kababayan, Kaharap natin ngayon ang mga bagong sagabal sa paglakas ng ating ekonomiya: terorismo, ang pagmahal ng langis sa daigdigang merkado, at ang patuloy na ligalig sa pulitika. Laban sa kanila, kailangang tibayin natin ang loob, magkapit-bisig, magsikap at magsakripisyo, at huwag magpadala sa mga nagbubunsod ng gulo, takot at hidwaan. Sa halip, sama-sama tayong magmatyag sa mga banta at balakid, at patuloy na lumikha ng yaman at trabaho para sa bayan. Sa ating pagkakaisa at pagsisikap, doon tayo mananaig, doon mananaig ang sambayanang Pilipino. |
| President admits resurgent economy faces new challenges from terrorism, high oil prices |
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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said today the
country’s resurgent economy faces new challenges from terrorism, the new
spurt in world oil prices and the continuing political noise. In her opening statement at the command conference this morning at Camp Crame, Quezon City in the aftermath of last Friday’s explosion at the Glorietta shopping mall in Makati City, the President called on the Filipinos to unite and spurn any effort by terrorist groups and critics of the administration to sow confusions and chaos. “Kailangang tibayin natin ang loob, magkapit-bisig, magsikap at magsakripisyo at huwag magpadala sa mga nagbubunsod ng gulo, takot at hidwaan,” she said. On the contrary, Filipinos should unite as one nation, and guard against all threats and roadblocks to government efforts to create more jobs and progress for all, she added. The President said that through their unity and perseverance, “Filipinos will prevail, the nation will prevail.” The Chief Executive convened the command conference to discuss latest developments on the Glorietta bombing and the progress of the investigation into the attack. She also discussed with Cabinet members and heads of various agencies, including the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) the measures being undertaken by various government agencies to solve the crime at the earliest possible time and bring the culprits to justice. Among those present during the command conference were Vice President Noli de Castro, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, AFP Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon Jr., PNP Director General Avelino Razon, Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio R. Bunye, Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Ronaldo Puno, and National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Geary Barias. During the command conference, a PNP chemist told the President that swabs lifted from the scene of the blast showed traces of royal demolition explosive (RDX), a nitrate-based high explosive material widely used in military and industrial operations. While it is the main ingredient of C-4, RDX is also utilized as a component of various explosives, including commercial explosives for mining operations. The military explained that simply because RDX is the principal component of C-4, it does not mean that the explosive used in the Glorietta attack came from the AFP inventory. “Maybe, the proper term is military-grade because that’s what it is. It’s a military-grade explosive rather than a commercial explosive used for mining,” an AFP officer said during the command conference. He said that nitrate-based high explosives were used by Jemaah Islamiyah, and Balik-Islam and other terrorist groups. |
