Give military all the means to finish Abu Sayyaf - Recto

Sen. Ralph Recto urged government to give the military all the resources it needs to end the reign of terror of the bandit group Abu Sayyaf.

"Our armed forces should be given all the resource it needs to finish off this menace from the face of the earth," Recto stressed.

The senator then stated that no quarter should be given to terrorists. "Barbarians should be pursued without letup," he exclaimed.

Recto then called on the government to use all available weapons in the "arsenal of democracy" to end the group's cruel carnage.

"These elements who want to turn any part of our country into another Baghdad should immediately be crushed," Recto said.

"But for our soldiers in the field to be able to fight our country's enemies with all their might, we must give them the means to do their job," he added.

Recto pointed out that this recurring problem must not be allowed to rear its ugly head again.

But as we punish those who oppress our people, let us ensure that the needs of civilians inconvenienced by the just actions are taken care of," he said.

He urged the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Health (DOH) to put their personnel on the ground to handle whatever civilian displacement the anti-Abu Sayyaf operation will create.

The Al-Qaeda affiliated bandit group on Thursday beheaded seven construction workers in Sulu after the provincial government refused to pay the P5 million the group was demanding.

"No cost must be spared in bringing to justice those who do not spare innocent lives. he ended.