Año says lawyer’s complaint baseless

By Funny Pearl A. Gajunera
Former Intelligence Services of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) and current 10th Infantry Division chief Major General Eduardo Año yesterday said the harassment complaint of a human rights lawyer against him and his comrades has “no basis.”
Still, Año said the AFP will continue its investigation on the complaint filed by lawyer Maria Catherine Dannug-Salucon as ordered by the Court of Appeals.
The CA had ordered the AFP on March 25 to identify the military officers who allegedly harassed Dannug-Salucon.
The lawyer had filed petitions for Writ of Amparo and Writ of Habeas Data in April 2014 after what she claimed was “intensified surveillance” by the military against her.
Año, who was ISAFP chief at the time, said Dannug-Salucon was just “too paranoid” and that she has just suddenly accused all units of the AFP in Northern Luzon.
“Masyado lang siyang paranoid. She can not even identify who was following her,” he said.
“She is not a member of the CPP-NPA (Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army) or any illegal organization, hence she cannot be under surveillance operations especially when I was still head of ISAFP,” he added.
Año said he did not know Catherine Dannug-Salucon and was not interested in her activities.
Based on reports, Dannug-Salucon claimed that several soldiers had been asking about her and her activities and that she had been labelled as a “Red lawyer.”
In issuing its order last March 25, the CA also ordered all military units to secure Dannug-Salucon and her family’s security.
Among the respondents in the complaint are President Benigno Aquino, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, former Armed Forces chief Emmanuel Bautista, former Philippine National Police chief Alan Purisima, Army chief Lieutenant General Hernando Iriberri, 5th Infantry Division chief Major General Benito de Leon, and Isabela Provincial Police Office chief Chief Superintendent Miguel de Mayo Laurel.