Chief Supt. Miguel Antonio Jr., Police Regional Office-9
(PRO-9) director, has ordered the conduct of a thorough investigation to
identify and prosecute the gunmen who burned the heavy equipment of a
construction firm undertaking a government project in Zamboanga del Norte.
Antonio issued the order after he received report of the
incident that took place around 8:30 p.m. Thursday in Barangay Titik,
Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte.
The heavy equipment that were burned included three units
backhoe and two units bulldozer worth millions of pesos.
The heavy equipment belong to the ESR construction firm that
is undertaking a road construction project in Barangay Titik, Sindangan,
Zamboanga del Norte towards the boundary of Zamboanga del Sur province.
Investigation showed the five units of heavy equipment were
parked at the shoulder of the road when suddenly, a group of gunmen arrived.
The three watchmen ran and sought for cover when the gunmen
shot three times on a road roller after they doused gasoline and set ablaze the
heavy equipment.
The three watchmen namely Abdun Aban Sakal Sr., 57; Abdun
Aban Sakal Jr., 18; and, Rogelio Ilogsong Patoc, 48, were unscathed.
Policemen and soldiers who rushed to the place of the
incident recovered three empty shells of calibre 7.6-milimeter (M-14) rifle.
Antonio ordered the police in Sindangan to file appropriate
charges once the identities of the suspects are established.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=872380
The above incident is characteristic of the extortion activity of the Maoist New People’s Army (NPA), the military wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). This attack appears to have taken place around the time that a senior Philippine military officer declared that “the government is winning the war against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CNN) in the three Zamboanga provinces.”
ReplyDeleteAccording to a recent article entitled “Army official: Rebels’ strength decline” that appeared in the Sun Star-Zamboanga dated 31 March 2016
“Colonel Jesus Manangquil, Jr., Army’s 101st Infantry Brigade commander, said the CNN has already lost mass based supports in the provinces of Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay.
Manangquil said the NPA rebels based in the three Zamboanga provinces belong to the Western Mindanao Regional Party Committee (WMRPC), which is headed by a certain Ka Bamban.
Manangquil said the strength of the WMRPC has declined to less than 100 armed followers this year from more than 1,000 in the previous years.”