Batasan Bombing

WHILE President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has urged Filipinos to refrain from speculations into the latest bombing incident in the Philippines -- that of the Batasan early last night, Speaker Jose de Venecia had already pointed his finger at unnamed terrorists or anarchists.

The bombing killed Rep. Wahab Akbar, the driver of Rep. Luz Ilagan of Gabriela and a staff member of another congressman. The injured included Rep. Ilagan and Rep. Pryde Henry Teves and two others.

I definitely agree with the Speaker when he said the objective was to destablize government by sowing fear among the congressmen. His immediate reaction was to continue to hold a session today to show that Congress is functioning normally as it should.

Still, the political and economic impact of a bomb destroying the south wing of the Batasan session hall a month after an explosion hit Glorietta in Makati cannot be discounted.

Meanwhile police general Geary Barias is already speculating that Congressman Wahab Akbar of Basilan was the target. Right after the Glorietta explosion, he also tried to downgrade the political impact by insisting that it was an accidental gas explosion.

But with the assassination angle, Barias may be alerady pointing at Akbar's enemies in Basilan that includes the Abu Sayyaf. It was also an assassination that breached the security cordon at the Batasan and blasted a symbol of government.

Nonetheless, let's wait for further developments on the investigation while we condemn the bombings for the harm it has wrought on lives of those who died or were injured as well as the damage to our recovering economy.