GRNLive Foreign Correspondents Network

AFP - Philippine police gave up many chances to shoot a sacked colleague who seized a busload of Hong Kong tourists, authorities said Friday as they admitted to many errors that led to eight hostages being killed.The country's police chief left Manila halfway through the crisis, the force's best-trained unit sat out a bungled assault on the bus and the media were allowed to run wild, a public inquiry was told. Interior Undersecretary Rico Puno and police chief Jesus Verzosa admitted there were repeated opportunities for snipers to shoot the hijacker during the day-long standoff, which was aired around the world on live television.

"There were a lot of chances where we could (have taken) him down," Puno told the inquiry.

"The general idea then was we would just tire him out and he would release the hostages."

Sacked policeman Rolando Mendoza took the busload of tourists hostage on August 23 in Manila in a desperate bid to clear himself of extortion charges and get his job back.

For much of the day the negotiating team believed Mendoza was cooperative, Puno said, borne out by his decision to free about a third of the 25 hostages as he bargained for authorities to re-open the extortion case against him. "By all indications he would release all of them," Puno said.

Dean Bernardo is Available in Manila;