We were all glued to the television last night watching the hostage drama that was taking place inside the Hong Thai Travel bus at Quirino Grandstand. We awaited with bated breath what was to become of the hostage taker and the people held captive inside the bus.

Photo courtesy of www.allvoices.com
According to reports, there were 22 Chinese nationals and three Filipinos inside the bus when Rolando Mendoza, a dismissed policeman, took over the bus yesterday morning demanding his reinstatement into the Metro Manila police force. The 12-hour hostage drama ended in bloodshed when Mendoza was killed by a sniper. Mendoza gunned down eight Hong Kong tourists inside the bus before he got killed. There were 17 hostage survivors.

In his official statement regarding the hostage crisis, President Benigno Aquino III conveyed his deepest sympathies to the families of the victims of the hostage situation at Quirino Grandstand. He also identified three reasons why the hostage-taking situation worsened, namely: (1) the letter of the Ombudsman to Mendoza promising him that she will review his case, (2) the presence of the hostage-taker’s brother, and (3) media coverage of the hostage-taker’s brother being taken into custody. He also ordered a thorough investigation of the incident.

Now, who do you think is to blame for the bloody end to the hostake-taking crisis at Quirino Grandstand?