Politicians told: Stay out of ops to rescue ICRC workers

MANILA, Philippines - Senator Rodolfo Biazon on Tuesday asked politicians to refrain from interfering in government efforts to rescue the three abducted workers of International Committee on Red Cross. The senator said this even as he advised the troops on the ground not to listen to orders of other people outside their chain of command. “I think it’s the appropriate thing to do (refrain from interfering in the rescue efforts) for everyone…. It is the lives of our people that is at stake, it is the resolution of the problems on the ground that is at stake. We cannot muddle up the set up on the ground," Biazon said The senator, a former military chief of staff, also appealed to politicians to understand the meaning of chain of command and the allocation of authorities and responsibilities. When asked if Senator Richard Gordon, chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross, is meddling with the rescue efforts, Biazon refused to answer directly and instead said let other people interpret what he said. “My advise to the troops is, know who are authorized to give you orders and know what is it that you are being asked to follow; what are the orders, national policies and tactical orders," Biazon said. He said that when he was still a soldier he made sure that appropriate authorities were the only ones to issue him orders. “I make sure that I understand clearly what the orders are supposed to be and outside of that I do not give a damn to anyone who were trying to issue me orders outside of the chain of command," Biazon said. He clarified that he is not putting the military above civilians. “The civilian authority is above the military chain of command that is why the President (Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) is the military commander in chief. So the military should only take orders from her," Biazon said. Last week, Gordon berated the military for their failed attempt to rescue the hostages from the Abu Sayaff group. Marine Major Gen. Juancho Sabban, the ground commander of Task Force Comet which is in charge of rescuing the three kidnapped ICRC workers in Sulu, went on a two-week leave. Sabban is going to Colombia as a keynote speaker on a seminar titled “Counter-insurgency and Counter-terrorism – The Columbian experience" that will be held from March 28 to April 2. Military officials said Sabban’s leave-of-absence has nothing to do with the tension with Gordon. Swiss Andreas Notter, Italian Eugenio Vagni and Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba have been in Abu Sayyaf hands since January 15. - Amita O. Legaspi, GMANews.TV