Lorenzana defers to Duterte on meeting with NDF officials
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said President Rodrigo Duterte doesn't need to consult anybody if he wants to resume peace talks with the communist rebels.
In a statement on Monday, Lorenzana said security officials will defer to the decision of Duterte after National Democratic Front ( NDF) officials requested to have a meeting with him.
"He has the prerogative to talk to them if he wants to. He doesn’t even have to clear or consult with anybody," Lorenzana said.
Duterte in a speech last Saturday in Palawan, said he called for a cluster meeting with the military to decide what he would do after NDF chief negotiator Fidel Agcaoili and senior adviser Luis Jalandoni, who are both based in the Netherlands, requested to meet him for a possible resumption of the peace talks.
“So I called a cluster meeting with the military, they told me maybe, just maybe (we can negotiate again). It's not a very big margin there. It's just maybe,” he said.
Philippine National Police Director General Oscar Albayalde said there are no instructions from the Malacanang to arrest Agcaoili and Jalandoni if they return to the country.
"There is still no coordination on what to do (if they arrive) whether (from) the Office of the President or the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines)," Albayalde said in a press briefing.
He said he is not sure if Agcaoili and Jalandoni have pending cases or warrants of arrest.
"I'm not that privy if they really have (cases) but if they told us to serve a warrant, we will serve it," he said.
This statement came after Duterte warned the two consultants they could be arrested when they return to the country.
He said he will make the announcement after his return from his trips to Singapore and Papua New Guinea where he will attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' Meeting. Ella Dionisio/DMS
