Although KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom, is an industry dominated by Muslims at least so far as Mindanao is concerned, they are equal opportunity victimisers. Though it is true that most KFR victims are Christian this is merely because of two factors:
1) Christians on Mindanao tend to be significantly better off than local Muslims in the financial sense
2) Christians usually aren't members of families or clans who will seek to retaliate and even if they have the wherewithall to do so, aren't as knowledgable about the local scene so as to be able to ascertain who was actually involved
Still, Filipino Muslims are sometimes targetted. Such is the case I am focusing on in my current entry. 34 year old Bae Faridah Olama Adilao was being driven in her pickup truck by her family's driver, 22 year old Mokamed "Moca" Mimbantas on Saturday, October 1st, 2011. The two were en route to the Adilao's home in Iligan City in Lanao del Norte Province, returning after a visit to the Marawi City headquarters of the Adilao's business empire in the neighbouring province of Lanao del Sur. As the truck entered the municipality of Balo-i's Barangay Nangka they fell in behind a row of vehicles waiting to transit what appeared to be a PNP, or Philippine National Police checkpoint.
When Ms.Adilao's pickup truck finally inched forward both she and Mr.Mimbantas were brusquely ordered out of the vehicle so that the "officers" could "search" it. As a uniformed man jumped into the pickup and drove it onto the shoulder of the road others quickly disassembled the checkpoint and ordered Ms.Adilao and Mr.Mimbantas into a minivan which then turned around and drove back into Lanao del Sur Province.
Ms.Adilao's husband, Sultan Abdurahim "Kim" Batawi Adilao then received a phone call at his office in the family's business headquarters in Marawi City's Pacasum Square on Gumisa Avenue. The unidentified caller wasted no time in informing him that his wife and his driver had been kidnapped, along with the usual warnings not to co-operate with the AFP or PNP (Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police). Seeing as how the kidnap took place in full view of the public in the middle of the day the crime had already been reported to the Balo-i MPO, or Municipal Police Office. Following SOP, or Standard Operating Procedure, the MPO notifed the Police Provincial Office, or PPO. With that notification the kidnapping became public knowledge with or without Sultan Adio's consent.
Police responding to the scene of the crime found the Adiao's pickup truck on the side of the road exactly where the kidnappers had left it. With nothing else to go on the truck was impounded for evidence and the municipality of Balo-i empaneled the requisite CMC, or Crisis Management Committee. Chaired by the mayor of the municipality in which the kidnapping took place it includes the Directors of the PPO as well as the PRO, or Police Regional Office, along with the IB (Infantry Battalion) and Brigade COs, or Commanding Officers. Usually the local DSWD, or Department of Social Welfare and Development, will be included as well. The idea is to streamline the Government response as well as to provide a solid interface between the media and the authorities.
Bae Adilao is very well known in Marawi City. She and husband own Tactical Guns and Ammo Enterprises, a weapons shoppe with six branches, Tactical Security Agency with four branches, a franchise of the Generic Pharmacy chain, a printing shoppe, a plane and ferry ticketing outlet, a fast food resturant and as if that wasn't enough, was recently awarded a TESDA, or Technical Education and Skills Development Agency, contract in conjunction with the training of local PNP agencies. The couple was also in the process of widening its participation in TESDA.
For now all Sultan Adilao can do is sit back and comfort the couple's two young sons as he waits for Mindanao's latest psycho drama to unfold.
No comments:
Post a Comment