FORT DEL PILAR, Baguio City ---- The national government will not resort to an all-out military offensive against suspected rogue elements of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) who have taken captive Irish priest Fr. Michael Sinnott since there are still available diplomatic options to take, Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro said here Saturday morning.

Teodoro was in town to make his last appearance in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) as the country's top defense official during the celebration of its 111th founding anniversary.

“We will not resort to a military offensive because the government has still other diplomatic options left to free the ailing priest from his abductors. We believe military offensive is not the solution to the problem,’’ he stressed.

Secretary Teodoro said that peaceful means of freeing the Irish priest from his kidnappers through all avenues of negotiations still remain the primordial concern of the government above anything else since it is the belief of the Arroyo administration that continuous communication will prevail over armed conflict.

The defense official believes the MILF is now under pressure to release the captive unhurt considering intelligence reports that six of its high-ranking commanders are behind the abduction of the Irish priest.

“We will not buckle down on the threats of the MILF leaders that they will back out of the peace process because of the sweeping allegation that they are the ones behind the kidnapping. It must be proven that they are not involved in the abduction of the sickly priest,” he added, claiming that they should work hard for the release of the priest as part of the confidence-building measure for the continuance of the peace process.

Teodoro also disclosed the local crisis management committee remains in full control of the situation with the able support from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), thus, there is no need to rush up the matter because all aspects of the kidnapping are being seriously studied and given appropriate solutions.

But he could not ascertain as to when will be the release of the abducted priest, saying it will surely come as a surprise to everyone in the near future.

Teodoro will be quitting his post by the third week of this month to pave the way for his candidacy as the standard bearer of the LAKAS-KAMPI-CMD administration party for the May 2010 synchronized national and local elections.