As I have often noted, the NPA's Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, long ago entered into a marriage of convnience with local warlord Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte. The son of a fomer governor of what was then the unified province of Davao, the father of current Davao City Mayor Sarah "Inday" Duterte Carpio, a city he himself currently serves as its Vice Mayor. While working as a City Prosecutor there in the mid-1980s, Duterte naturally ran across a good many members of the NPA, and its political wing, the CPP, or Communist Party of the Philippines.
When Roddy decided to run for Mayor at the tail end of that same decade, he utilized one particular relationship with a high ranking member of the NPA in Davao City, Leonicio Pitao, better known by his nom de guerre, "Ka Parago.".The majority of the city's poorest areas had become battlegrounds between the NPA, its urban assaaination element, the SPARU (Special Armed Red Partisan Units), the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and its ultra-right wing extremist organizations, like Alsa Masa (Masses Arise). In exchange for relegating all NPA activities to three outlying districts of Davao City, Roddy would offer overt assistance in the form of cash, material, and intelligence. That quid pro quo remains in effect today.
Unlike her father, current Mayor Sarah "Inday" Durerte Carpio, has failed to maintain that same mutually beneficial relationship with the NPA. Things began well enough when Mayor Duterte Carpio entered office in June of 2010. Despite serving as a senior officer in the AFP Reserves, Carpio played hardball with the 69IB (Infantry Battalion), threatening to withdraw Davao City's share of financial support for the 69's COIN (Counterinsurgency) program in the city's outlying Paquibato District, one of the three aforementioned districts that her father, current Vice Mayor Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte had surrendered-for all intensive purposes-to the NPA. Mayor Duterte Carpio was livid over the 69's kinetic operations which, in her absolutely ignorant opinion, were utilized far too freely. In the waning days of OPlan Bantay Laya II, the irate Mayor decided to take a stand...so what if she single handedly reversed six years of AFP gains made in Paquibato, and by relation-since that district is the lynchpin in the NPA occupation of the three contigious districts-all of Davao City.
For Christmas of 2010 Mayor Duterte Carpio accompanied her father, the Vice Mayor, to Ka Parago's (then) main camp, on a forest covered ridge above Paquibato District. As is always the case, Duterte came without his security detachment. That festive occasion would mark the high point in Mayor Duterte's relationship with the NPA. From
there it was a steady decline although Carpio did get some face time with Parago two months later when she once again accompanied her father in another visit to Paquibato. In this latter meeting Duterte stayed outside a villager's hut where Parago, his Political Secretary Ka Benjamin, and Mayor Carpio hashed out each other's wish lists.
February 6th, 2011 an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) set by the NPA's 1st Pulang Bagani Company detonated in an ambush of a supply convoy serving posts manned by the 69IB (Infantry Battalion). Mayor Carpio had been scheduled
to appear at an outreach program later in the day. Pitao took the extraordinary step of personally issuing a statement on the ambush. He pointed out that the detonation occurred in Purok #5, in Paquibato's Barangay Mapula. In conyrast, Mayor Carpio's planned route was many kilometers from the blast site.
The issue that has best defined Mayor Carpio's interaction with the NPA has neen the outcry ovet the 69IB garrisoning a detachment on the grounds of the Paradise Embac Annex Primary School, in Paquibato District's Barangay Paradise Embac. Three City Councilors, Kaloy Bello, Leah Librado Yap and Jimmy Dureza have championed the demand made by residents of the NPA-controlled barangay, asking that the 69IB remove the post from school grounds. At the tail end of the Summer of 2011, the issue came to a head as the NPA mass front organization, Karapatan-which bills itself as a human rights NGO-galvanized a wider ranging response to a clear breech of International Law, courtesy of the AFP. Given her history of speaking out against over-militirization in that very district, Mayor Carpio might have been expected to at least try and assuage the very real concerns of school staff, students, and the families of those students. Instead, in her ever increasingly haughty tone, Mayor Carpio not only sided with the AFP, she arrogantly dismissed the concerns expressed by the aforementioned stakeholders.
At that point the NPA did its part in burning whatever proverbial bridges remained. Taking part in a co-ordinated stance that began in September of 2011, when the NDFP member orgabization SELDA (Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Labann sa Detensyon at Aresto/Task Force on Ex- Political Prisoners) attacked Carpio in the local media over an interview she had given in which she had had the audacity-and ignorance-to claim that all Political Prisoners are detained for actual crimes. Then, in an official statement released by the NPA's Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, accused Mayor Carpio of letting power go to her head (and that was the nicest thing it said). The statement, released in December of 2011, was an iota away from a death warrant, branding Carpio as having "bordered on being a counterrevolutionary or reactionary." In fact, it segued into a vicious tirade against Carpio with a laundry list of critical grievances. It was interesting in other ways because it noted how her father, Vice Mayor Duterte, had "in some ways recognized and cooperated in the revolutionary struggle," an "admission" that seemed even more pronounced once Duterte was officialy named an "Observer," and later a "Consultant" for the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, or NDFP, the negotiating arm of the CPP/NPA/NDFP Maoist triumverate.
So it was that the customary Christmas slash New Years Truce of the NPA failed to usher in anything new. An uneasy air hanging over Paquibato District left many stakeholders nervously awaiting an armed response by Ka Parago. On January 12th, 2012, the tension broke when Parago's 1st Pulang Bagani Company launched two simeltaneous attacks on a pair of CAA posts. The CAA, or Civilian Active Auxiliaries, are a geographically static armed reserve of the AFP. The CAA element most visible to civilians are the CAFGU, or Civilian Auxiliary Forces Geographical Units. CAFGU posts are manned by residents of the barangay housing that specific post. CAFGU posts are then limited in only being able to operate within the boundries of their specific municipality.
In Paquibato District there is a different type of CAA. Usually listed as CAFGU posts. They are actuallt tribal and clan paramilitaries grandfathered in under the now defunct ISP (Internal Security Plan), "Oplan Alsa Lumad" (Operational Plan Hilltribes Arise). Like CAFGUs they are under the nominal command of am AFP cadre, usually a Corporal. Whereas CAFGU opetate in tandem with an AFP cadre battalion, the tribal paramilitaries often operate independently and as one might imagine, this does at times lead to unhealthy excesses.
On the day in question, at 3AM, two CAA posts in adjoining puroks (a barangay can be sub-divided into five puroks), within Paquibato District's Barangay Malabog, were attacked by two NPA elements. The posts, in Puroks Cababon and Golden Shower (no jokes please, it is an actual purok though for the life of me, I have no idea why it was bequathed that name), were both able to repel the Maoists but with two CAAs being wounded in the process.
CAA Loreto Lireta of Purok Golden Shower, was wounded in his left hand and left side of his chest by shrapnel from a rifle grenade. CAA Anthony Camansi of Purok Cabonbon, was wounded in his right hand.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
NPA Armed Contacts for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part I: Front 27 Attacks Three Mining Targets within Six Hours
The Philippines as a whole not only has never legislated nepotism, it actually holds the practice in high esteem. For Filipinos of all ethnicities the family is everything. Therefore, it is counter-intuitive to Filipinos, to view nepotism as anything but a positive occurrence. In addition, the Philippines is a nation of patriarchal tribal cultures. The convergance of both these dynamics has rendered the political landscape of the country one of a playing field tightly controlled by a relatively few political dynasties who almost always rely on the proverbial "Goons and Gold" to maintain their iron grip on power.
In Mindanao this is especially true. Take for instance, ComVal, or, as it is known to people outside of Mindanao, Compostela Valley Province. Carved mostly out of Davao del Norte Province in 1998, it has remained the personal fifedom of two families, the Caballeros, and the Uys, with the latter currently holding the Governorship since 2007. Govetnor Arturo Tao Uy, whose usually known by his Chinese name, Chionkee [sic], is-like most politicos- deeply enmeshed in at least grey sectors of the economy. Amongst Uy's grey market holdings are a group of gold mills, to process the ore mined in several sections of the province. That Governor Uy might profit from industries he is tasked with legislating and policing is a non-issue since Philippine Law and ethics dont go near such things. Naturally then, Uy has used his position of power to sweeten the pit for several multi-nationals.
At 8PM, on June 8th, 2012, two single axle dumptrucks entered the municipality of New Bataan's Barangay Camanlangan, and then reduced speed as they crossed together into that barangay's Sitio Tagpura before stopping several meters short of the Philco Mining Company compound. Dismounting from the two trucks, thirty NPA guerillas from Front 27, the Rhyme Petalcorin Command of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, split into three elements. Ten guerillas formed the strike force while the remaining two groups of five cadres each took up perimeter positions around the outside of the compund's chainlink and razor wire fencing.
As the strike force quickly entered the compound they rounded up the few security guards present and announced that the NPA was undertaking a punative action in response to Philco's refusal to pay its "Revolutionary Tax" debt. Amazingly the guards were unarmed and so the NPA failed to capture any weaponry, but managed to make up for that disappointing fact by pouring gasoline over ten portable generators, one excavator, one tracked utility vehicle with a boom, a large drilling rig, and two Elf trucks...all of which were then burned entirely.
Withdrawing out of the compound the strike force piled back into the two dumptrucks which then advanced past the compound and picked up the renaining ten guerillas on the ground. Onward the two trucks drove until at just before 11PM that night, they entered the municipality of Nabunturan, also in ComVal. Making their way to Barangay Mainit, the trucks drove until they located a specific "planta," or gold mill out of the thirty-four dotting that barangay's landscape.
This particular mill, in Sitio Inupuan, is owned by none other than Governor Arturo "Chionkee" Tao Uy himself. Using his position of power and influence, Uy wrangled himself a dedicated customer, the "Milagros-Oz" gold operation in the booming Maragusan Gold Field. Like virtually all gold mills in ComVal, this mill was more profitable than the mine it serviced. Charging P2,000 ($44) per "puyong," or 50 kilogramme sack, it was guaranteed a cashflow since it took its cut off of the top. Uy and his clan own several mills in ComVal, a province where nine out of the eleven municipalities host high assay gold fields.
As the guerillas from Front 27 dismounted from their trucks near the gold mill, they almost literally landed on a PNP, or Philippine National Police officer, Senior Police Officer First Grade (SPO1) Charlie Azucar. Taking the hapless officer prisoner after divesting him of his 45 caliber service revolver, he was kept under guard by three guerillas from the perimeter force, with the NPA having re-assumed the same configuration as the Philco assault elements three hours earlier. Quickly infiltrating the mill compound, the guerillas disarmed the nine soldiers from the Uy paramilitary, capturing their nine 45 caliber pistols, two M653s ("mini-M16s"), one M14, and one Ingram machine pistol.
After seizing an unknown amount of cash and golddust, the NPA withdrew at just after midnite. Taking SPO1 Azucar with them in their dumptrucks the NPA next drove to the home of the barangay captain to whom they released the abducted police officer, minus his pistol. With SPO1 Azucar freed, the two trucks then exited the barangay before being abandoned as the thirty guerillas withdrew on foot with their captured weaponry and loot.
As noted above, among Uy's playmates is the Oz Metal Exploration and Development Corporation. Uy, via the partnering corporation, Milagrosa Mineral Resources Corporation, has his hooks in ComVal's newest goldrush, the Maragusan Field, 300 hectares on the borders of Barangays Tupaz and Pamintaran. The compound, in Pamintaran's Sitio Saranga, is protected by Uy's paramilitary, and by the looks of it, they are in dire need of a brushup. As SPO1 Azucar was being released at just after midnite, June 9th, another "platun" (platoon) from Front 27 was readying themselves to launch a third assault in ComVal.
Approaching the mining compound on foot after trekking down the single muddy track that connects the two aforementioned barangays to the town proper, nearly 5 kilometers away, the guerillas from Front 27 very quickly disarmed the ten paramilitary soldiers on duty. As is almost always the case, they were drinking beer and playing cards.
Quickly herding the stunned captives into the compound offices, the NPA captured ten 45 caliber pistols, one KG machine pistol, one shotgun, six handheld radios and one cellphone. The guerillas then turned their attention to the lack of heavy equipment sitting inside the compound perimeter. After informing their captives that the following action was being undertaken due to the firms' refusals to pay its share of "Revolutionary Taxes," poured gasoline over the three portable generators sitting against the fence, and then set them afire before withdrawing out of the compound and back down the dirt track. From there, the guerillas split up into several smaller groups for the long hike through the jungle.
A third and fourth platoon, both from Front 2, the Crucifino Uballas Command, also of the SMRC, ambushed a convoy from the 71IB (Infantry Battalion) as the 71st was being deployed for the "Hot Pursuit" against Front 27 for its three attacks. The ambush, in the municipality of Mawab's Barangay New Visayas took place at 540AM, June 9th, as the last 6 x 6 troop carrier rolled into Purok #2. The NPA claims it killed five soldiers. It did not. It did however, wound four, one critically, from the initial IED blast (Improvised Explosive Device).
In Mindanao this is especially true. Take for instance, ComVal, or, as it is known to people outside of Mindanao, Compostela Valley Province. Carved mostly out of Davao del Norte Province in 1998, it has remained the personal fifedom of two families, the Caballeros, and the Uys, with the latter currently holding the Governorship since 2007. Govetnor Arturo Tao Uy, whose usually known by his Chinese name, Chionkee [sic], is-like most politicos- deeply enmeshed in at least grey sectors of the economy. Amongst Uy's grey market holdings are a group of gold mills, to process the ore mined in several sections of the province. That Governor Uy might profit from industries he is tasked with legislating and policing is a non-issue since Philippine Law and ethics dont go near such things. Naturally then, Uy has used his position of power to sweeten the pit for several multi-nationals.
At 8PM, on June 8th, 2012, two single axle dumptrucks entered the municipality of New Bataan's Barangay Camanlangan, and then reduced speed as they crossed together into that barangay's Sitio Tagpura before stopping several meters short of the Philco Mining Company compound. Dismounting from the two trucks, thirty NPA guerillas from Front 27, the Rhyme Petalcorin Command of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, split into three elements. Ten guerillas formed the strike force while the remaining two groups of five cadres each took up perimeter positions around the outside of the compund's chainlink and razor wire fencing.
As the strike force quickly entered the compound they rounded up the few security guards present and announced that the NPA was undertaking a punative action in response to Philco's refusal to pay its "Revolutionary Tax" debt. Amazingly the guards were unarmed and so the NPA failed to capture any weaponry, but managed to make up for that disappointing fact by pouring gasoline over ten portable generators, one excavator, one tracked utility vehicle with a boom, a large drilling rig, and two Elf trucks...all of which were then burned entirely.
Withdrawing out of the compound the strike force piled back into the two dumptrucks which then advanced past the compound and picked up the renaining ten guerillas on the ground. Onward the two trucks drove until at just before 11PM that night, they entered the municipality of Nabunturan, also in ComVal. Making their way to Barangay Mainit, the trucks drove until they located a specific "planta," or gold mill out of the thirty-four dotting that barangay's landscape.
This particular mill, in Sitio Inupuan, is owned by none other than Governor Arturo "Chionkee" Tao Uy himself. Using his position of power and influence, Uy wrangled himself a dedicated customer, the "Milagros-Oz" gold operation in the booming Maragusan Gold Field. Like virtually all gold mills in ComVal, this mill was more profitable than the mine it serviced. Charging P2,000 ($44) per "puyong," or 50 kilogramme sack, it was guaranteed a cashflow since it took its cut off of the top. Uy and his clan own several mills in ComVal, a province where nine out of the eleven municipalities host high assay gold fields.
As the guerillas from Front 27 dismounted from their trucks near the gold mill, they almost literally landed on a PNP, or Philippine National Police officer, Senior Police Officer First Grade (SPO1) Charlie Azucar. Taking the hapless officer prisoner after divesting him of his 45 caliber service revolver, he was kept under guard by three guerillas from the perimeter force, with the NPA having re-assumed the same configuration as the Philco assault elements three hours earlier. Quickly infiltrating the mill compound, the guerillas disarmed the nine soldiers from the Uy paramilitary, capturing their nine 45 caliber pistols, two M653s ("mini-M16s"), one M14, and one Ingram machine pistol.
After seizing an unknown amount of cash and golddust, the NPA withdrew at just after midnite. Taking SPO1 Azucar with them in their dumptrucks the NPA next drove to the home of the barangay captain to whom they released the abducted police officer, minus his pistol. With SPO1 Azucar freed, the two trucks then exited the barangay before being abandoned as the thirty guerillas withdrew on foot with their captured weaponry and loot.
As noted above, among Uy's playmates is the Oz Metal Exploration and Development Corporation. Uy, via the partnering corporation, Milagrosa Mineral Resources Corporation, has his hooks in ComVal's newest goldrush, the Maragusan Field, 300 hectares on the borders of Barangays Tupaz and Pamintaran. The compound, in Pamintaran's Sitio Saranga, is protected by Uy's paramilitary, and by the looks of it, they are in dire need of a brushup. As SPO1 Azucar was being released at just after midnite, June 9th, another "platun" (platoon) from Front 27 was readying themselves to launch a third assault in ComVal.
Approaching the mining compound on foot after trekking down the single muddy track that connects the two aforementioned barangays to the town proper, nearly 5 kilometers away, the guerillas from Front 27 very quickly disarmed the ten paramilitary soldiers on duty. As is almost always the case, they were drinking beer and playing cards.
Quickly herding the stunned captives into the compound offices, the NPA captured ten 45 caliber pistols, one KG machine pistol, one shotgun, six handheld radios and one cellphone. The guerillas then turned their attention to the lack of heavy equipment sitting inside the compound perimeter. After informing their captives that the following action was being undertaken due to the firms' refusals to pay its share of "Revolutionary Taxes," poured gasoline over the three portable generators sitting against the fence, and then set them afire before withdrawing out of the compound and back down the dirt track. From there, the guerillas split up into several smaller groups for the long hike through the jungle.
A third and fourth platoon, both from Front 2, the Crucifino Uballas Command, also of the SMRC, ambushed a convoy from the 71IB (Infantry Battalion) as the 71st was being deployed for the "Hot Pursuit" against Front 27 for its three attacks. The ambush, in the municipality of Mawab's Barangay New Visayas took place at 540AM, June 9th, as the last 6 x 6 troop carrier rolled into Purok #2. The NPA claims it killed five soldiers. It did not. It did however, wound four, one critically, from the initial IED blast (Improvised Explosive Device).
Monday, June 11, 2012
Developments within the AFP for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part I: A Retiring Master Seargent Kills a Rogue Police Officer in Surigao
Like any developing nation, the Philippine Military (AFP, as in "Armed Forces of the Philippines") and Police (PNP aka "Philippine National Police) are riddled with corrupt personnel AND practices. Perhaps one finds corruption commited more overtly, but in terms of how widely it exists, I havent found the country to be any worse than any other Southeast Asian Nation.
What does set Philippine corruption apart though is its spectacular "in your face" nature. I have found, on average, that national media outlets cover major cases of AFP and/or PNP corruption at least twice a month. Rarely, one finds a source reporting something from the opposite end of the spectrum-a "good deed," or an example of civic virtue -emanating from both entities. However, the following case is unique in that it shows the PNP at its worst, and the AFP at its best.
When enlisted or non-commissioned infantrymen in the AFP approach retirement their superior officers coddle them. Offers of an Educational Leave, in AFP speak, "Exit Schooling," allow men approaching retirement to sit back and take it easy for once. Enough of the digging cesspools for peasants in the name of "Peace and Development," conducting checkpoints at remote jungle outposts in hopes of finding a few board feet of illegaly harvested timber, or standing guard at village elections in hopes of preventing the inevitable Election Related Violence (so common here that it is given its own acronym, EVR). Of course, were he even a captain he would be laying in bed at home, only travelling to his assigned post to pick up his share of purloined public funds, or, the proceeds of organized criminal enterprises that are found at every organic IB (infantry battalion) on Mindanao. Men with 25 years or more service, like Master Sergeant (MSgt) Eleno Leopoldo, of the 58IB, are given an extra perk on top of Exit Schooling, they are put on paid hiatus until retirement.
Although only 50 years old, and thereby six years shy of the AFP's Mandatory Retirement, Leopoldo has 26 years under his belt and since soldiering is a young man's endeavour, he filed his request in late 2011. Given an Exit Date of December 20th, 2012, he would enjoy 7 months on Hiatus. Although a native of Oroquieta City in the Mindanowan province of Misamis Occidental, he returned to his home of 20 years, Barangay Burgos in the small town of Cortes, in Surigao del Sur, Mindanao's Caraga Region.
Although Surigao del Sur Province is largely controlled by the Maoist NPA, Cortes has been largely spared the strife and bloodshed that has wracked most towns in that province. In fact, even crime is nearly non-existent in that corner of our fair isle. Therefore, it was a huge suprise when, in the late afternoon of May 18th, 2012, MSgt.Leopoldo witnessed a horrific crime.
While along National Hiway, en route to his home after a long day in his small rice paddy, Leopold saw his neighbour Tomas Corales struggling with a man. As he slowly approached, Leopold was shocked to see the assailant pistol whip Corales, while a second man raised a pistol, shouting for Corales' grown son Vicente to dismount from his father's precious green motorcycle. Vicente hesitated only to take a bullet in each thigh.
As luck would have it, MSgt.Leopold, like most farmers in the area, carried a rifle while working in his fields. Rats are a perennial problem for rice and corn growers on Mindanao and ao Leopold carried with him a single shot 22 caliber rifle. Unfortunately however, Leopold had just spent the better part of the afternoon shooting at any slight movement in the rice field. As a result, Leopold had only six shells.
At 70 meters from the struggle taking place in front of him, Leopold quickly loaded a shell. Seeing a man with a rifle ariaching them, the two men with Tomas and Vicente Corales drew down on Corales. The two attackers were part of a group of five, all from the municipality of Mati, in Davao Oriental Province. The three attackers not occupied with the attempted theft of the Corales' motorcycle now grabbed it and as one man started it, the other two jumped.aboard behind the driver and burned rubber peeling out in their escape.
Now at 50 meters and closing, Leopold aimed his rifle and shot the man who had just pistol whipped Tomas Corrales. Hitting the attacker square in the abdomen, Leopold killed the man instantly. Quickly loading a second shell intothe chamber, Leopold squeezed off a second.round, hitting the gunman who had just shot Vicente Corrales in the face. Because the second attacker was standing sideways in relation to Leopold, the round shot the man's nose off but didnt kill him. Rapidly dropping a third shell into the chamber, Leopold attempted to neutralise the remaining three attackeers who had by then, managed to commandeer the Corrales' motorcycle and peel out in an attempt to escape. By the time Leopold fired his fourth shell however, the stolen motorcycle had spun out of control and landed in an irrigation ditch. Instead of wasting his last two shells Leopold kept his rifle trained on the three but alas, they ran at full speed through a rice paddy, and then into the jungle.
Responding PNP from the MPO, or Municipal Police Office, arrived on scene fifteen minutes later, and instantly drew down on MSgt.Leopold, mistaking the man who saved the day for an attacker. After realising their mistake the responding officers discovered that the dead and wounded attackers were among those responsible for a violent armed robbery that had preceeded the attempted theft of the Corrales motorcycle; at just before 4PM that afternoon, five unfamiliar faces had entered the retail establishment cum gambling headquarters owned by Nomeriano Corada, posing as customers.
Without warning the five men had all pulled pistols, divested Mr.Corada of P14,000 ($310), and then quickly cleanedout all cash, with a REPORTED amount of P400,000 ($9,000)-more than two years wages for most in the area. After leaving Corada's "store" on foot, the five made their way out to National Hiway where they ran into Tomas and Vicente Corales on their motorcycle just outside Cortes Municipal Hospital...and their their date with destiny and
MSgt.Eleno Leopoldo (and of course his 22.rifle).
Upon approaching the shot attackers, the PNP discovered a pistol on each, a 9MM on the dead man, and a 45 caliber on the wounded man. Moreover, the PNP discovered that the dead man, the leader of the five men, was one of their own. 38 year old Arnold Valentin Olveda was a PO1, or Police Officer First Grade, with the Mati MPO, in Davao Oriental Province. Having gone AWOL three days earlier, PO1 Olveda had led his small group on a cross-island crime spree. The wounded man was PO1 Olveda's elder brother, Tomie Olveda, age 45, and himself a public school.yeacher. After.being tortured...I mean QUESTIONED...gave Cortes MPO the identites of his three escaped accomplices:
1) Tito Carmelita
2) Jun Gallardo
3) Eljon Lauron
As of posting, all three remain free and so now MSgt.Leopold is unable to stay at home. He and his family have had to re-locate and of course that means he has been unable to tend to his rice paddy, thereby depriving him and his family of their main source of income. Police have also seized his trusted 22 rifle as evidence and since his service weaponry had been surrendered prior to his taking Leave, he has no way in which to defend himself and.his family.
As luck would have it, that rifle was manufactured domestically, by ARMSCOR. ARMSCOR is the corporate progeny of Squires Bingham which has been in bed with the Government since the early American Era, and in bed with the AFP since Independance. As such, the corporation fields an entire Reserve IB for the AFP, under Lieutenant Colonel Chua. Therefore it came as no suprise when the company announced it was awarding MSgt.Leopoldo with.a brand new pistol. One would imagine Leopoldo might land himself a cushy endorsement deal. However, since this is, after all, the Philippines, Leopoldo is lucky to have even gotten a pistol.
Finally, Cortes MPO claims it merely seized the jewlery and a paltry P13,000 ($270) off of the body of PO1 Olveda. P387,000 ($8,800) remains "missing."
What does set Philippine corruption apart though is its spectacular "in your face" nature. I have found, on average, that national media outlets cover major cases of AFP and/or PNP corruption at least twice a month. Rarely, one finds a source reporting something from the opposite end of the spectrum-a "good deed," or an example of civic virtue -emanating from both entities. However, the following case is unique in that it shows the PNP at its worst, and the AFP at its best.
When enlisted or non-commissioned infantrymen in the AFP approach retirement their superior officers coddle them. Offers of an Educational Leave, in AFP speak, "Exit Schooling," allow men approaching retirement to sit back and take it easy for once. Enough of the digging cesspools for peasants in the name of "Peace and Development," conducting checkpoints at remote jungle outposts in hopes of finding a few board feet of illegaly harvested timber, or standing guard at village elections in hopes of preventing the inevitable Election Related Violence (so common here that it is given its own acronym, EVR). Of course, were he even a captain he would be laying in bed at home, only travelling to his assigned post to pick up his share of purloined public funds, or, the proceeds of organized criminal enterprises that are found at every organic IB (infantry battalion) on Mindanao. Men with 25 years or more service, like Master Sergeant (MSgt) Eleno Leopoldo, of the 58IB, are given an extra perk on top of Exit Schooling, they are put on paid hiatus until retirement.
Although only 50 years old, and thereby six years shy of the AFP's Mandatory Retirement, Leopoldo has 26 years under his belt and since soldiering is a young man's endeavour, he filed his request in late 2011. Given an Exit Date of December 20th, 2012, he would enjoy 7 months on Hiatus. Although a native of Oroquieta City in the Mindanowan province of Misamis Occidental, he returned to his home of 20 years, Barangay Burgos in the small town of Cortes, in Surigao del Sur, Mindanao's Caraga Region.
Although Surigao del Sur Province is largely controlled by the Maoist NPA, Cortes has been largely spared the strife and bloodshed that has wracked most towns in that province. In fact, even crime is nearly non-existent in that corner of our fair isle. Therefore, it was a huge suprise when, in the late afternoon of May 18th, 2012, MSgt.Leopoldo witnessed a horrific crime.
While along National Hiway, en route to his home after a long day in his small rice paddy, Leopold saw his neighbour Tomas Corales struggling with a man. As he slowly approached, Leopold was shocked to see the assailant pistol whip Corales, while a second man raised a pistol, shouting for Corales' grown son Vicente to dismount from his father's precious green motorcycle. Vicente hesitated only to take a bullet in each thigh.
As luck would have it, MSgt.Leopold, like most farmers in the area, carried a rifle while working in his fields. Rats are a perennial problem for rice and corn growers on Mindanao and ao Leopold carried with him a single shot 22 caliber rifle. Unfortunately however, Leopold had just spent the better part of the afternoon shooting at any slight movement in the rice field. As a result, Leopold had only six shells.
At 70 meters from the struggle taking place in front of him, Leopold quickly loaded a shell. Seeing a man with a rifle ariaching them, the two men with Tomas and Vicente Corales drew down on Corales. The two attackers were part of a group of five, all from the municipality of Mati, in Davao Oriental Province. The three attackers not occupied with the attempted theft of the Corales' motorcycle now grabbed it and as one man started it, the other two jumped.aboard behind the driver and burned rubber peeling out in their escape.
Now at 50 meters and closing, Leopold aimed his rifle and shot the man who had just pistol whipped Tomas Corrales. Hitting the attacker square in the abdomen, Leopold killed the man instantly. Quickly loading a second shell intothe chamber, Leopold squeezed off a second.round, hitting the gunman who had just shot Vicente Corrales in the face. Because the second attacker was standing sideways in relation to Leopold, the round shot the man's nose off but didnt kill him. Rapidly dropping a third shell into the chamber, Leopold attempted to neutralise the remaining three attackeers who had by then, managed to commandeer the Corrales' motorcycle and peel out in an attempt to escape. By the time Leopold fired his fourth shell however, the stolen motorcycle had spun out of control and landed in an irrigation ditch. Instead of wasting his last two shells Leopold kept his rifle trained on the three but alas, they ran at full speed through a rice paddy, and then into the jungle.
Responding PNP from the MPO, or Municipal Police Office, arrived on scene fifteen minutes later, and instantly drew down on MSgt.Leopold, mistaking the man who saved the day for an attacker. After realising their mistake the responding officers discovered that the dead and wounded attackers were among those responsible for a violent armed robbery that had preceeded the attempted theft of the Corrales motorcycle; at just before 4PM that afternoon, five unfamiliar faces had entered the retail establishment cum gambling headquarters owned by Nomeriano Corada, posing as customers.
Without warning the five men had all pulled pistols, divested Mr.Corada of P14,000 ($310), and then quickly cleanedout all cash, with a REPORTED amount of P400,000 ($9,000)-more than two years wages for most in the area. After leaving Corada's "store" on foot, the five made their way out to National Hiway where they ran into Tomas and Vicente Corales on their motorcycle just outside Cortes Municipal Hospital...and their their date with destiny and
MSgt.Eleno Leopoldo (and of course his 22.rifle).
Upon approaching the shot attackers, the PNP discovered a pistol on each, a 9MM on the dead man, and a 45 caliber on the wounded man. Moreover, the PNP discovered that the dead man, the leader of the five men, was one of their own. 38 year old Arnold Valentin Olveda was a PO1, or Police Officer First Grade, with the Mati MPO, in Davao Oriental Province. Having gone AWOL three days earlier, PO1 Olveda had led his small group on a cross-island crime spree. The wounded man was PO1 Olveda's elder brother, Tomie Olveda, age 45, and himself a public school.yeacher. After.being tortured...I mean QUESTIONED...gave Cortes MPO the identites of his three escaped accomplices:
1) Tito Carmelita
2) Jun Gallardo
3) Eljon Lauron
As of posting, all three remain free and so now MSgt.Leopold is unable to stay at home. He and his family have had to re-locate and of course that means he has been unable to tend to his rice paddy, thereby depriving him and his family of their main source of income. Police have also seized his trusted 22 rifle as evidence and since his service weaponry had been surrendered prior to his taking Leave, he has no way in which to defend himself and.his family.
As luck would have it, that rifle was manufactured domestically, by ARMSCOR. ARMSCOR is the corporate progeny of Squires Bingham which has been in bed with the Government since the early American Era, and in bed with the AFP since Independance. As such, the corporation fields an entire Reserve IB for the AFP, under Lieutenant Colonel Chua. Therefore it came as no suprise when the company announced it was awarding MSgt.Leopoldo with.a brand new pistol. One would imagine Leopoldo might land himself a cushy endorsement deal. However, since this is, after all, the Philippines, Leopoldo is lucky to have even gotten a pistol.
Finally, Cortes MPO claims it merely seized the jewlery and a paltry P13,000 ($270) off of the body of PO1 Olveda. P387,000 ($8,800) remains "missing."
Abu Sayyaf Armed Contacts for the First Quarter of 2012, Part I: Assasination of a Marine Officer in Zamboanga City
First Lieutenant Francisco R.Sayoc was enjoying a rare visit to Zamboanga City. The CMO (Civil Military Operations) for MBLT-3 (Marine Battalion Landing Team-3) had recently arrived from his posting on Jolo Island, one of Mindanao's offshore provinces, and had quickly requisitioned a Marine jeep and driver to chaufer him, his wife Sukran Sahiban Sayoc and their daughter. After all, what good was it if an officer didnt exercise his perogative now and again?
On the morning of January 28th, 2012, Sayoc devoted a couple of hours towourards taking his wife and daughter shopping. Having his driver head into Barangay Santa Maria, and angle into a parking space in front of the Hapi Conveniece Store on Salvador Street, Sayoc handed a fistful of pesos to his wife and watched her and their daughter happily enter the store. As he sat in the front passenger seat the young Marine officer probably never even noticed a motorcycle pull alongside the rear of his jeep. As the store's CCTV (Closed Circuit TV) recorded what was about to take place, Sayoc and his driver were deep in conversation.
A man riding tandem on the back of the motorcycle quickly stepped around the jeep and onto the sidewalk. Quickly making his way towards the front seat he pulled a 45 caliber pistol from his waistband and from point blank range pulled the trigger. Running back to the idling motorcycle the gunman quickly hopped back onto the rear and wrapped his arms around the waist of the driver as the bike peeled out and drove away at a high rate of speed.
From inside the store First Lieutenant Sayoc's wife and daughter witnessed screaming onlookers gathered around the jeep. Running outside both screamed at the driver to take them to the nearest hospital. Speeding through city streets the jeep finally arrived at Western Mindanao Medical Center only to have First Lieutenant Francisco R.Sayoc declared dead on arrival.
On the morning of January 28th, 2012, Sayoc devoted a couple of hours towourards taking his wife and daughter shopping. Having his driver head into Barangay Santa Maria, and angle into a parking space in front of the Hapi Conveniece Store on Salvador Street, Sayoc handed a fistful of pesos to his wife and watched her and their daughter happily enter the store. As he sat in the front passenger seat the young Marine officer probably never even noticed a motorcycle pull alongside the rear of his jeep. As the store's CCTV (Closed Circuit TV) recorded what was about to take place, Sayoc and his driver were deep in conversation.
A man riding tandem on the back of the motorcycle quickly stepped around the jeep and onto the sidewalk. Quickly making his way towards the front seat he pulled a 45 caliber pistol from his waistband and from point blank range pulled the trigger. Running back to the idling motorcycle the gunman quickly hopped back onto the rear and wrapped his arms around the waist of the driver as the bike peeled out and drove away at a high rate of speed.
From inside the store First Lieutenant Sayoc's wife and daughter witnessed screaming onlookers gathered around the jeep. Running outside both screamed at the driver to take them to the nearest hospital. Speeding through city streets the jeep finally arrived at Western Mindanao Medical Center only to have First Lieutenant Francisco R.Sayoc declared dead on arrival.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
MILF Armed Contacts for the First Quarter of 2012, Part I: Attack on Kidapawan City Jail
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Thursday, June 7, 2012
NPA Armed Contacts for the First Quarter of 2012, Part II: Six Guerillas Die in Attack on Sumifru
Of multi-nationals raising bananas on Mindanao, only Sumifru continues to swim against the current by refusing to buckle under to the NPA's program of "Revolutionary Taxation." Since Dole threw in the towel in 2011 and began realising that quarterly payoffs to the Maoist Insurgency left its bottom line a tad bit more healthy than regular violent attacks on personnel and equipment, only Sumifru has enjoyed 30 caliber machine gun fire, multiple truck burnings and all around terrible publicity. One would have imagined that the Japanese-based corporation might have learned a thing or two after the October 2011 attack on mining interests in the municipality of Claver, in Surigao del Norte Province. Hardest hit, in the financial sense, was Sumitomo Metal, a sister corporation to...you guessed it...Sumifru.
On Monday, January 15th, 2012, at 3AM, a green single axle dump truck with an M60 crew served machine gun mounted in the truck's dump body and covered with fourty guerillas clinging to the sides began picking up speed as it crossed into Barangay Tuburan, in the municipality of Mawab in ComVal, as Compestela Valley Province is known locally. Unbeknownst to the NPA an alert villager, uncharacteristically disloyal to the Maoist causr, quickly phoned in a warning to 10ID (Infantry Division) Headquarters, located in that same municipality. It doesnt take a rocket scientist to postulate an objective in that well trodden barangay. If the NPA were launching a forceful attack in Barangay Tuburan, it had to be against Sumifru and its large banana plantation.
10ID had quickly phoned a sublimated infantry brigade, the 1001st, and ordered the Duty Officer to quickly warn its 66IB (Infantry Battalion) that the NPA was en route to a large and somewhat vulnerable target within the 66th's AOR (Area of Responsibility). Much to his credit, the 66IB's Lieutenant Colonel Antonio "Tony" Florendo had recently deployed acstrike team to supplement Sumifru's SCAA (Special Citizens Active Auxiliary, the quasi-state sponsored paramilitary sublimated to the AFP but funded entirely by specific private business interests to which it serves as a unitary dedicated armed force). Off duty, Florendo was made aware of the situation and scrambled an entire company (120 soldiers) and Light Armored units, not taking any chances. He then readied himself to rendevouz with the aforementioned reinforcements.
As that single dump truck turned onto the Sumifru access road the SCAA post was already in full defensive mode. As the truck's tires hit the gravel stretch just before the post it was met with carefully directed fire that immediately stple the initiative from the attacking NPA and converted the NPA's fully offensive tactical operation into a holding.pattern. Asode from preventing any incoming threat from the truck mounted M60, two IED (Improvised Exolosive Devices) teams were prevented from neutralising the post's perimeter fencing.
As the attack passed the self-imposed 15 minute window at which point the NPA inevitably withdraws if unable to capture momentum, the post received word that Lieutenant Colonel Flotendo had already circumvented the requisite NPA Blocking Force and was now twenty minutes out the NPA suddenly withdrew, leaving behind the stolen dumptruck, the M60 mounted upon it, two M14s, two M16s, one 45 caliber pistol and the bodies of six dead guerillas:
1) Romeo T.Vender, 34, New Corella, Davao del Norte Province
2) Mario Ocay, 37, New Corella
3) Ener Rosquetes Etol, 22, Asuncion, Davao del Norte Province
4) Vicente P.Libre, Asuncion
5) Jose M.Elac, 50, Montevista, ComVal
6) Juan Paloma, 27 Monkayo, ComVal
On Monday, January 15th, 2012, at 3AM, a green single axle dump truck with an M60 crew served machine gun mounted in the truck's dump body and covered with fourty guerillas clinging to the sides began picking up speed as it crossed into Barangay Tuburan, in the municipality of Mawab in ComVal, as Compestela Valley Province is known locally. Unbeknownst to the NPA an alert villager, uncharacteristically disloyal to the Maoist causr, quickly phoned in a warning to 10ID (Infantry Division) Headquarters, located in that same municipality. It doesnt take a rocket scientist to postulate an objective in that well trodden barangay. If the NPA were launching a forceful attack in Barangay Tuburan, it had to be against Sumifru and its large banana plantation.
10ID had quickly phoned a sublimated infantry brigade, the 1001st, and ordered the Duty Officer to quickly warn its 66IB (Infantry Battalion) that the NPA was en route to a large and somewhat vulnerable target within the 66th's AOR (Area of Responsibility). Much to his credit, the 66IB's Lieutenant Colonel Antonio "Tony" Florendo had recently deployed acstrike team to supplement Sumifru's SCAA (Special Citizens Active Auxiliary, the quasi-state sponsored paramilitary sublimated to the AFP but funded entirely by specific private business interests to which it serves as a unitary dedicated armed force). Off duty, Florendo was made aware of the situation and scrambled an entire company (120 soldiers) and Light Armored units, not taking any chances. He then readied himself to rendevouz with the aforementioned reinforcements.
As that single dump truck turned onto the Sumifru access road the SCAA post was already in full defensive mode. As the truck's tires hit the gravel stretch just before the post it was met with carefully directed fire that immediately stple the initiative from the attacking NPA and converted the NPA's fully offensive tactical operation into a holding.pattern. Asode from preventing any incoming threat from the truck mounted M60, two IED (Improvised Exolosive Devices) teams were prevented from neutralising the post's perimeter fencing.
As the attack passed the self-imposed 15 minute window at which point the NPA inevitably withdraws if unable to capture momentum, the post received word that Lieutenant Colonel Flotendo had already circumvented the requisite NPA Blocking Force and was now twenty minutes out the NPA suddenly withdrew, leaving behind the stolen dumptruck, the M60 mounted upon it, two M14s, two M16s, one 45 caliber pistol and the bodies of six dead guerillas:
1) Romeo T.Vender, 34, New Corella, Davao del Norte Province
2) Mario Ocay, 37, New Corella
3) Ener Rosquetes Etol, 22, Asuncion, Davao del Norte Province
4) Vicente P.Libre, Asuncion
5) Jose M.Elac, 50, Montevista, ComVal
6) Juan Paloma, 27 Monkayo, ComVal
Political Developments for the First Quarter of 2012, Part I: Arrest in the Killing of Father Fausto "Pops" Tentorio, Kind of...Part 2
A continuation...
The beleagured Secretary of the Department of Justice, or DOJ, Leila de Lima glibly announced that one of Father Fausto."Pops" Tentorio's killers was now in NBI custody in Manila. The Philippines being what it is, the word "susoect" iscrarely, if ever, bandied about. Not only had there been an "arrest," but the man in custody, Jimmy Ato, was mnone other than the actual shooter himself.
In reality however, things were a great deal different. Contrary to Secretary de Lima's exacting claims, noone had been arrested in the killing, let alone Jimny Ato. Ato was in custody of course, but he had been taken on a 1995 arrest warrant for Arson with Homicide for a crime allegedly committed in the municipality of North Upi, in Maguindabao Province, when Ato had been all of age 16. Having gotten its hands in censuses taken by the AFP, or the Armed Forces of the Philippines PDTs (Peace and Development Teams), the NBI had quickly run each resident of thevtargetted municipality, Arakan, the town in which the killing had taken place, NBI had discovered the aforementioned Arson warrant against Jimmy Ato lying dormant...voila, a fallguy.
Subjected to extreme interrogation techniques-a given in the Philippine scheme of things-Ato quickly played ball. While denying he was the gunman, Ato fingered four other people. In early October of 2011, he said, he had been at a local store when two brothers, casual acquaintances of his- Jose Sultan Sampulna and Dima Maligudans Sampulna- had offered the itinerant mining labourer a chance to earm some decent money for once. Curious, Ato was toldvto join the brothers at a meeting with a local businessman and would be politician, William Buenaflor.
Accompanying the Sampulna Brothers to the Buenaflor home, he was suprised to see that recently named MPO, or Municipal Police Office Director, Senior Inspector Benjamin Rioflorado, also in attendance. According to this initial affadavit by Jimmy Ato, it was the Sampulna Brothers on that Honda Wave motorcycle that ferried the actual killer. The motive behind the killing, according to this affadavit, was Father Tentorio's rabid opposition to a proposed hydroelectric favility on the Pulangui River (Rio Grande de Mindanao). Willian Buenaflor represented a handful of businessnen whob stood to make millions of Pesos each should the hydroelectric project ever reach fruition. Senior Unspector Riofkirado was the broker of the murder contract, fingering the Sampulna Brothers...who in turn recruited Jimmy Ato as a lookout.
Curiously as well, both the NBI and the DOJ began leaking information that Roberto Ato, Jimmy's brother, also played a role in tge murder scheme. In fact, in the narrative that holds Jimmy Ato to be the gunman, Roberto is fingered as the driver of that motorcycle. Alatmed at being supposedly implicated in the killing, Roberto Ato fled Kulaman Valleyband Arakam as a whole and made his way to Kidapawan City where he took refuge with Congresswoman Nancy Catamco (North Cotabato 2nd District). Both Jimmy and Roberto serve as Catamco's local political base. Catamco noted that Roberto had never neen charged but that erroneous allegations could ruin his life.
Just after New Year, 2012, NBI went to court in Cotabato City to press forward with the aforementioned Arson with Homicide warrant from 1995. The motion asked the court to mandate Jimmy Ato to remain within NBI custody until the bureau is ready to move forward in the Father Tentorio. On February 24th, 2012, the NBI did just that, in conjunction with a parallel investigatory agency, Task Force Fausto (led by PRO-12, aka Police Regional Office for Region 12) charging Jimmy Ato, his younger brother Roberto (who remains protected by Congresswoman Nancy Catamco, the Ato political patron), along with both Sampurna Brothers, who up until the present (June of 2012), remain the subject of a manhunt.
The beleagured Secretary of the Department of Justice, or DOJ, Leila de Lima glibly announced that one of Father Fausto."Pops" Tentorio's killers was now in NBI custody in Manila. The Philippines being what it is, the word "susoect" iscrarely, if ever, bandied about. Not only had there been an "arrest," but the man in custody, Jimmy Ato, was mnone other than the actual shooter himself.
In reality however, things were a great deal different. Contrary to Secretary de Lima's exacting claims, noone had been arrested in the killing, let alone Jimny Ato. Ato was in custody of course, but he had been taken on a 1995 arrest warrant for Arson with Homicide for a crime allegedly committed in the municipality of North Upi, in Maguindabao Province, when Ato had been all of age 16. Having gotten its hands in censuses taken by the AFP, or the Armed Forces of the Philippines PDTs (Peace and Development Teams), the NBI had quickly run each resident of thevtargetted municipality, Arakan, the town in which the killing had taken place, NBI had discovered the aforementioned Arson warrant against Jimmy Ato lying dormant...voila, a fallguy.
Subjected to extreme interrogation techniques-a given in the Philippine scheme of things-Ato quickly played ball. While denying he was the gunman, Ato fingered four other people. In early October of 2011, he said, he had been at a local store when two brothers, casual acquaintances of his- Jose Sultan Sampulna and Dima Maligudans Sampulna- had offered the itinerant mining labourer a chance to earm some decent money for once. Curious, Ato was toldvto join the brothers at a meeting with a local businessman and would be politician, William Buenaflor.
Accompanying the Sampulna Brothers to the Buenaflor home, he was suprised to see that recently named MPO, or Municipal Police Office Director, Senior Inspector Benjamin Rioflorado, also in attendance. According to this initial affadavit by Jimmy Ato, it was the Sampulna Brothers on that Honda Wave motorcycle that ferried the actual killer. The motive behind the killing, according to this affadavit, was Father Tentorio's rabid opposition to a proposed hydroelectric favility on the Pulangui River (Rio Grande de Mindanao). Willian Buenaflor represented a handful of businessnen whob stood to make millions of Pesos each should the hydroelectric project ever reach fruition. Senior Unspector Riofkirado was the broker of the murder contract, fingering the Sampulna Brothers...who in turn recruited Jimmy Ato as a lookout.
Curiously as well, both the NBI and the DOJ began leaking information that Roberto Ato, Jimmy's brother, also played a role in tge murder scheme. In fact, in the narrative that holds Jimmy Ato to be the gunman, Roberto is fingered as the driver of that motorcycle. Alatmed at being supposedly implicated in the killing, Roberto Ato fled Kulaman Valleyband Arakam as a whole and made his way to Kidapawan City where he took refuge with Congresswoman Nancy Catamco (North Cotabato 2nd District). Both Jimmy and Roberto serve as Catamco's local political base. Catamco noted that Roberto had never neen charged but that erroneous allegations could ruin his life.
Just after New Year, 2012, NBI went to court in Cotabato City to press forward with the aforementioned Arson with Homicide warrant from 1995. The motion asked the court to mandate Jimmy Ato to remain within NBI custody until the bureau is ready to move forward in the Father Tentorio. On February 24th, 2012, the NBI did just that, in conjunction with a parallel investigatory agency, Task Force Fausto (led by PRO-12, aka Police Regional Office for Region 12) charging Jimmy Ato, his younger brother Roberto (who remains protected by Congresswoman Nancy Catamco, the Ato political patron), along with both Sampurna Brothers, who up until the present (June of 2012), remain the subject of a manhunt.
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