53 school attack plans foiled in South Cotabato after Banga shooting

 MANILA — Authorities foiled over 50 planned school shootings in South Cotabato in the wake of the shooting incident in Banga, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla disclosed Thursday.

Remulla said 53 people involved in online threats and grooming were arrested after authorities moved to prevent possible attacks in schools in the area.

“That week, there were 53 planned school shootings in South Cotabato, lahat ‘yun natigil namin. Sila ang nag-i-influence at sila ang gumagawa,” Remulla said. 

The cases involved different individuals and were not part of a single coordinated group, he added.

Some of those arrested are now undergoing psychiatric counseling.

Remulla also clarified that authorities did not simply “rescue” the minors involved, saying some had already become active threats after allegedly displaying firearms and making threats online.

“Hindi mo masasabing minors kasi active threat. Naglalabas ng baril sa internet, so hindi rescued ‘yun. Intervention ang ginagawa namin,” he said.

Authorities initially kept the operations confidential due the sensitivity of the cases and the involvement of minors who could be considered children in conflict with the law (CICL). 

For Remulla, however, the incidents underscore the need to address online grooming before it turns into real-world violence.

“Ganyan kaseryoso ang problemang ito kaya kung akala ng mga tao na this is not priority number 1, ito na ‘yun, dapat mga kabataan muna,” he said.  

“Let’s put everything behind. The Ombudsman will resolve the floodgate, the Sandiganbayan will prosecute them, lahat ‘yan matatapos na, but this takes precedence because the impact of today will reverberate for the next 20 years so this is the most important thing,” he added.

The disclosure came as the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) launched the first Metro Manila School Safety and Security Summit in Quezon City.

The two-day summit brings together police, school officials and other government agencies to develop a standardized response to threats against schools, from disturbing behavior and online threats to actual active-shooting incidents.

NCRPO Officer-in-Charge PBGen. Christopher Abrahano said the goal is to catch warning signs before a threat escalates into violence.

“Meron tayong preparation, prevention, at saka ‘yung response pero ultimately ang gusto natin lahat ma-prevent na, mag-graduate into an active shooting incident. Hindi lang problema ng pulis ito, problema ng pamilya, community, at schools,” Abrahano said. 

The proposed framework will set out what schools and police should do once a disturbing behavior or threat is reported, including how information should be escalated and how agencies should respond.

Abrahano said the summit would also feature prevention practices from areas including Tacloban, Banga and Zamboanga, as well as cases in Metro Manila where threats were successfully prevented.

Remulla warned that online grooming can begin when children are still too young to fully understand its consequences.

He said teachers need to recognize grooming patterns, while students should be taught how to identify suspicious online interactions.

Parents, meanwhile, should learn how to talk to their children without immediately confronting or accusing them.

“Ang mga magulang dapat matuto makipag-usap. Hindi kasi pwede confrontational, hindi puwedeng ina-accuse ‘yung bata. There is a way of talking to children so I hope this accomplishes everything,” Remulla said. 

He said parents can start by simply asking their children whether someone has been contacting them through chat groups or whether they have encountered a particular online group.

“Iba na ang Gen Z, iba na ‘yung Gen Alpha, iba na ‘yung mga bata ngayon. Dati ako sanay ako sa palo, ngayon hindi naman na pinapalo ‘yung mga bata. Iba na rin ang mundo, may internet na, may groomers na kaya iba na ang approach natin,” he added.

Remulla said similar discussions will be brought to other regions, noting that he has already begun talks with local officials in Calabarzon and plans to meet with officials in Ilocos Region.