MISAMIS Oriental Gov. Yevgeny Vincente Emano yesterday said he has rejected a proposal for local governments in Mindanao to hire and arm civilians in order to augment security forces in the country’s second largest island.
Emano said the idea was raised by Bukidnon Gov. Jose Ma. Zubiri during a meeting on security concerns of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) last week because of the crisis in strife-torn Marawi City.
The proposal, according to Emano, is for each local government unit to hire at least 40 people to be armed by the Armed Forces in order to help implement security measures in Mindanao.
Emano said that while he understands why there is a need to increase the number of security personnel in every Mindanao province, city and municipality, “it is not necessary to arm them.”
He said it would be like local governments creating private armies.
“It’s what I told (Zubiri) when he asked me of my opinion during our RPOC meeting,” Emano said.
He added: “Wala hinuon masunod ang maong sugyot ug depende na lamang kono kini sa LGUs kung interesado sila. Ilang buot ipasabot optional lamang daw. Mahimo nga mag-hire sila, mahimo usab nga dili. Then, that’s crazy. Kung duna koy private army, duna usab silay private army, mahimo maggubat, magkagubot na hinuon.” (misor pio)
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