MANILA -- Ranking defense and military officials on Monday formally presented Father Chito Suganob to members of the media in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.
The priest, who is Vicar General of Marawi City's Cathedral of Our Lady Help of Christians, in a Radyo Pilipinas report, gave a thumb's up sign and said he is in good condition.
"Maraming salamat sa inyo. I'll pray for you. God bless you all and pray for me also for my healing and recovery. Thank you very much and God bless you all," Suganob told members of the media as he was whisked away from the briefing area at the General Headquarters Conference Room, in Camp Aguinaldo.
The priest was among the civilians held hostage by Maute terrorists during their attack last May 23.
Military units rescued Suganob, 51 and Lordbin Noblesa Acopio, 29, around 11:45 p.m. Saturday at Barangay Sangcay, Dansalan, Marawi City.
Present during this event were DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Eduardo Año.
"As the intensity of the armed confrontation continued to escalate in favor of our troops and while the terrorists were busy repelling the attack, the troops had the opportunity to snatch Father Chito and Mr. Acopio during melee," he added.
Both men were immediately brought to the Headquarters of Task Force “Trident” where they were given appropriate medical attention.
"I extend my commendation to the operating troops for this excellent job," Lorenzana said.
Earlier, military troops successfully recaptured the Bato Mosque and the Jamaitul Philippine al-Islamiya Schools from the hands of the remaining Maute Group terrorists who used the buildings as a defensive and command positions.
Meanwhile, Año said the priest's rescue was a deliberate effort and could be attributed to ongoing AFP combat efforts to corner and neutralize remaining Maute Group remnants in the locality.
Initial attempts to rescue Suganob took place last Sept. 13, 14 and 15, but these did not prove successful as the terrorists managed to take the hostage into a more secured location at the Bato Mosque.
The AFP chief said they only managed to rescue Suganob when they learned of this information.
Año said an estimated 12 hostages are still in the hands of Omar Maute, one of the founders of the Maute Group, responsible for the Marawi City siege.
He added that the AFP will use everything in its hands to safely rescue the remaining hostages from their terrorist captors.
As of this posting, the number of slain Maute terrorists are placed at 673 along with 149 government troops killed.
The number of civilians killed during the conflict are placed at 47 while rescued Marawi City residents totalled to 1,730, and 699 firearms were recovered. (PNA)
