PNoy tells 'Mendoza wannabe' to stop making threats

President Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino III told a disgruntled retired Army sergeant to stop saying that he will imitate Rolando Mendoza, the police-officer-turned-hostage-taker, if the government does not give him the benefits that he is asking for. "That is extremely wrong, he should desist from it and he should go through the process," Aquino said in an interview with reporters on Friday. The President made the statement after learning that a certain retired TSgt. Charmie T. Palencia has been making verbal threats over the phone that he will imitate Mendoza, who hijacked a tourist bus carrying 21 Hong Kong tourists and four Filipinos on August 23. After an 11-hour standoff, Mendoza and eight Hong Kong tourists were killed. The Senate Blue Ribbon Oversight Office (BROOM) informed the Department of National Defense (DND) that Palencia has been calling their office to demand that the Philippine Army include in the calculation of his benefits his broken service from February 24, 1988 to August 14, 1994. The complaint was first relayed to the DND on January 21, 2010. It was then endorsed to the DND Office of the Secretary on February 26 and has been pending action in the office ever since. However, since the August 23 hostage crisis, Palencia has reportedly been threatening the Senate BROOM, through phone calls, that he will imitate Mendoza, who staged the hostage incident to demand for his reinstatement to the police force. Aquino reminded Palencia that nothing good will come out from issuing such threats. "Otherwise if a wrong was committed through him, doing another wrong will not rectify the situation," Aquino said. He likewise advised Palencia to go through the proper legal process in claiming for benefits. Aquino said Palencia can write to the agencies concerned to determine whether retired Army's complaint warrants an investigation. "Ite-scheck natin (We will check that)," the President said. –VVP, GMANews.TV