Essay
A ‘Death’ Revisited

Fr. Cirilo Nacorda, parish priest of Lamitan, Basilan, recently claimed that notorious Abu Sayyaf spokesman Aldam Tilao, a.k.a. Abu Sabaya, supposedly killed in an encounter with the military last June 21, is still alive. It would not be quite accurate to say that Fr. Nacorda dropped a bombshell here. Such a revelation was to be expected to begin with.

By ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO
Bulatlat.com

The military’s claim that Sabaya was finally killed was never believable in the first place. None of the military officials who announced to the world that Abu Sabaya was dead saw him fall dead and sink into the river. Their announcement was based solely on a report by the soldier who was supposed to have shot Sabaya. That soldier said that with his night-vision goggles, he saw that the man he had shot was wearing a black shirt, dark glasses, and had a scarf wrapped around his head.

But we can never be sure it was Abu Sabaya just by those signs. Though he has been known for dressing up like that, he is not the only one known for doing so. Demonstrators have been seen dressed like that. Heavy metal aficionados have been seen dressed like that. Motorcycle enthusiasts have been seen dressed like that.

In fact, considering the many physical similarities between Defense Sec. Angelo Reyes and Abu Sabaya, Secretary Reyes may be mistaken for Sabaya if he should wear dark glasses and a black shirt and wrap a scarf around his head.

Another thing, with night-vision goggles one can never exactly be sure about the identity of a person.

Suspicions that Sabaya is still alive are heightened by the fact that months after his supposed death, his body is yet to be found.

Of course Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio Bunye has argued that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has seen a videotape of the encounter and is convinced that Sabaya is indeed dead. But where in the world is that tape? If indeed there is such a tape of the encounter, why is it only now that the people are being made to know of its existence? Besides, what reason have we to believe in the statements of a president who has been duped by her subalterns in at least six occasions into making wrong announcements?

Of course Secretary Reyes has argued that if indeed Sabaya were still alive, he would have been taunting the military before the media. A leading broadsheet has echoed this argument. But this conveniently ignores the presumption that there is collusion between the military and the Abu Sayyaf, a highly justifiable presumption considering how easily the bandit group was able to slip out of tight military cordons, including during the Lamitan siege last year. Just when the soldiers already had Sabaya and his men surrounded, they were suddenly called for a “briefing,” allowing the bandits to walk casually away.

It is worth remembering that sometime last year, both the president and military already announced that Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani had been killed in an encounter. It turned out he was still alive.

It is also worth recalling that sometime in the ‘70s, the military announced to the world that a notorious bandit leader in Mindanao had been killed in an encounter. The dead man emerged years later to become a mayor.

Besides, what motive would Fr. Nacorda have for lying against the military? By doing so he is risking his life, and he stands to gain absolutely nothing for himself from that.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Ernesto Carolina has stated that the burden of producing Sabaya’s body is now on Father Nacorda.

But no, Major General Carolina. Considering all the circumstances that surround this issue, the burden of proof now weighs more heavily on the government.  Bulatlat.com

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