Ranking ‘NPA leader’ arrested

From the Visayan Daily Star (Jun 11, 2020): Ranking ‘NPA leader’ arrested

An organizer of the National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW) and an alleged ranking leader of the New People’s Army in northern Negros, was arrested at a monitoring control point in Brgy. Caduha-an, Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, Tuesday night.

Nabbed for disobedience and illegal possession of explosives was Gaspar Davao, alias Aldong, Lt. Col. Robert Mansueto, acting Cadiz City police chief, said.

Upon checking with the Philippine Army and a government intelligence agency, Mansueto said they found out that Davao, who is a resident of Brgy. Pinapugasan, Escalante City, is the secretary of the Northern Negros Front (NNF) White Area and Section Committee Tabacco, as well as the NNF finance officer.

Mansueto said that the arrest of Davao yielded a fragmentation grenade, subversive documents, P14,000 in cash, eight cellular phones, cash transactions, newsletters of the Roselyn Jean Pelle Command, receipts and confidential documents.

ROUTINE INSPECTION

Davao and his four other companions were on board a public utility van that was flagged down by the police for a routine inspection and contact tracing activities in line with the COVID-19 preventive measures of the Cadiz City government, Mansueto said.

He said that Davao, who was not wearing a face mask, insulted and disobeyed police officers, who had asked him to fill out COVID-19 contact tracing forms as required by the Cadiz City government for commuters passing the Cadiz City area.

While his companions complied, Mansueto said that Davao for still unknown reasons pulled out a fragmentation grenade, which prompted police personnel, backed up by 79th Infantry Battalion soldiers, to subdue and disarm him of the explosive.

The NFSW and the NPA Apolinario Gatmaitan Command yesterday condemned what they called the illegal arrest of Davao, who is an organizer of the NFSW in northern Negros.

CLASSIC LIES

Ka Juanito Magbanua, spokesperson of the Apolinario Gatmaitan Command, issued a statement yesterday alleging that Davao is not a member of the NPA, and that the military claims that he is a ranking rebel leader is yet another one of their classic lies, red-tagging of legal organizers, imprisoning them through trumped-up cases and planted evidence.

NFSW secretary general John Lozande claimed that Davao was accosted by police personnel without telling him what violations he had committed.

Several hours later, according to Lozande, Davao was told that he had been arrested because a fragmentation grenade was recovered from a bag he had been carrying.

“We see this arrest of Gaspar Davao as another form of trumped-up cases which the Duterte regime adds up to its long list of repressive records against the progressive leaders of the sugar workers,” Lozande claimed in a statement.

Lozande, who is demanding the immediate release of Davao, said that they will not be cowed by this brazen attempt to silence Duterte’s critics through this unlawful arrest perpetrated by the state agents”.

Col. Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, yesterday recalled that Davao was among the subjects of the search warrants for violation of RA 10591 during a raid in Bacolod City, which was issued by Quezon City Regional Executive Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert, who managed to escape during the raid.

Pasaporte lauded the efforts of 79IB troops and Cadiz City that resulted in the apprehension of Davao during the joint AFP-PNP checkpoint operations in the area.

"The AFP-PNP will continue to intensify its efforts to hunt down members of communist NPA terrorists in Negros to preempt their terroristic and extortions activities”, Pasaporte said, as he encouraged Negrenses to cooperate with them through their Whole of Nation Approach in Ending the Local Communist Armed Conflict in Negros Occidental.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2020/June/11/topstory2.htm