MANILA - The wife of a slain Special Action Force commando broke down in tears Friday as she begged President Aquino to pursue justice for her husband and other SAF troopers killed in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.
Speaking before the necrological service for the 44 slain SAF commandos, Erica Pabalinas, wife of slain Senior Inspector Ryan Pabalinas, said she was unsure if she should feel sad for losing a husband or happy that he died a hero and fought to his last breath to claim peace.
She said that before the incident, she tried to ask her husband not to go to the Mamasano operation.
"Naglalambing ako sa kanya. Sabi ko: 'Daddy, wag ka na lang po sumama kasi di ka pa ok.' And then, he replied: 'Mommy, ayan ka na naman. Hindi mo na naman naiintindihan.'"
"And then our little girl said to him: 'Daddy, wag ka na lang umalis kasi gabi na. Baka kunin ka lang po ng bad guys.'"
"Despite that, Ryan left. It is a clear manifestation that my husband put duty first before family and I understand."
Pabalinas said she has come to slowly accept that her husband cannot be with them anymore. She also told the wives of the other slain troopers to be strong and not think that all they wanted was the reward money for the capture of Marwan.
"For the grieving wives just like me, let us be strong for our children because behind every brave SAF trooper is a strong wife. Behind every SAF trooper is a strong wife," she said.
She then told the President: "To our President, we seek for your help to attain justice. Please, sir president. Please help us."
The 44 SAF commandos were killed by Moro rebels during an operation to hunt down terror suspects Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan and Basit Usman.
The incident has threatened to derail peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
