Taguig Mayor Freddie R. Tiñga yesterday opposed the proposal to transfer Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan, Jr. to the Camp Bagong Diwa Jail, a move that poses a “clear and present danger” to the security of the city.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo V. Puno on Wednesday proposed the transfer of Ampatuan, presently under the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation, to Camp Bagong Diwa instead of the Quezon City Jail.

Mayor Tiñga for his part, agreed with the pronouncement of Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera that Ampatuan, accused in the massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao last November 23, is a “high risk prisoner” and it is best for him to continue to be detained in isolation at the tightly-secured NBI headquarters in Manila.

“The proposed transfer will not only pose a great danger to our peaceful and thriving city, but may also endanger the life of the accused himself once he is exposed to other prisoners,” Tiñga said.

It must be noted that Camp Bagong Diwa is just about 200 meters away from Brgy. Maharlika, one of the biggest Muslim communities in the country, outside of Mindanao.  Many residents fear that the transfer of Ampatuan may jeopardize the safety and security in the said community.

Way back in 2001, Tiñga backed by thousands of residents particularly the Muslim community, strongly opposed the then-impending transfer of trial and imprisonment of hundreds of Abu Sayyaf members from Mindanao to Camp Bagong Diwa.  Their plea, however, fell on deaf ears.

In March 2005, a foiled jail break of Abu Sayyaf members detained at the Camp Bagong Diwa jail led to a bloody standoff.

“The 2005 standoff was a concrete evidence of the peril and threat to which a city like Taguig hosting a major prison facility is exposed.  We should not allow this to happen again,” Mayor Tiñga stressed.