Police clueless on Cuizon ambush

POLICE continue to face a blank wall on the ambush of labor leader Antonio Cuizon, president of the Panaghiusa sa Mamumuo sa Atlas (PAMA), who was waylaid Monday while on his way to Lutopan, Toledo City by four motorcycle-riding men in Barangay Uling, Naga.

Cuizon remains confined at the Chong Hua Hospital in Cebu City and doctors are still to remove one more bullet from his shoulder, according to Benny Jumao-as, his secretary, in a talk with THE FREEMAN yesterday. Cuizon underwent surgery Monday night.

Cebu Provincial Police Office Director, P/Supt. Vicente Loot yesterday announced that he had tasked Toledo Police Chief Leodegario Acebedo to lead the investigation of the case.

Loot said that although the incident took place in Naga, he asked the Toledo City Police Office to handle it since the case could involve the feud among the former workers of Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corporation (ACMDC). Acebedo will, however, be backed by the Naga police and the Provincial Intelligence and Investigation Branch in the conduct of the inquiry.

As of yesterday, no witness has positively identified any of the assailants since the perpetrators wore helmets and bonnets. The authorities are, however, hoping that the witness who approached the two assailants, who waited at the ambush area, might be able to come up with a positive identification.

Loot also said that the police will be pursuing the angle that this case could be related to the labor problem of the mine, which has been closed for the past 11 years, since there have been clashes between the rival groups.

The police will also invite Marcos Billones, the leader of the Agricultural Atlas Miners for unpaid Employees Association, the rival union, to shed some light on the case.

Two weeks ago, some of Billones' members accused Cuizon of harassment.

Six members of Billones' group even filed criminal charges against Cuizon, which included harassment, grave threats, grave coercion, carnapping, robbery, and arson.

Denial

In an interview over radio station dyLA yesterday, Billones denied any involvement with the ambush of Cuizon saying that his group would not resort to such actions since they have filed cases against Cuizon so that they can obtain justice through legal means.

In fact, Billones also said that he is very willing to face investigation if he would be invited by the authorities. He added that as far as he is concerned, there many people who are mad at Cuizon and even alleged that there are at least 18 cases that have been field against the president of PAMA.

Another Angle

Acebedo, for his part said, they are also looking into the angle of business rivalry as the motive of the attempt on Cuizon's life.

The Toledo City Police Chief said Cuizon is engaged in the scrap iron and hauling business and might have stepped on somebody's toes in his transactions.

Cuizon, 49, was ambushed in sitio Gaway-Gaway in barangay Uling, which is very near the common boundary shared by the town of Naga and Toledo City. He sought help from the Police Sub-Station in Lutopan, which is just a few kilometers away from where he was ambushed.

The labor leader was driving his dark gray Toyota Corolla when he was fired at and luckily, the members of his family - his mother, two aunts, and two grandchildren, who were onboard the vehicle were spared from harm.

Jumao-as said that as of the moment, Cuizon's family has no plans and would not take any action until the victim fully recovers and the results of the police investigation are out.

NLRC

The National Labor Relations Commission yesterday said it is no longer privy to the agreement between ACMDC and the former mine workers.

The agency also clarified it did not summon any of the labor groups from the former mining company to its office because the case is already due for resolution at NLRC's 4th Division. This after ACMDC filed a motion for reconsideration on an earlier decision by the NLRC, which favored the workers.

A source from the NLRC said that when Atlas offered to pay the workers from the proceeds of the scrap materials from the defunct mining firm, NLRC was already out of the picture because it is an agreement only between the management and workers. "I-approve ra man sa NLRC unsa nasabutan nila. Igo ra mi mo-resolve sa appeal," (The NLRC will only approve what was agreed upon by the parties involved) the source told THE FREEMAN.

According to the source, there are actually three groups of workers that had filed separate cases against ACMDC demanding for the payment of their wages and benefits after the company closed in 1994. These groups are that of Cuizon, Billones, and Macario Alcontin. Last year, the NLRC stopped the hearings on the case and decided to resolve the issue based on the appeal of the management.

However, the source said that it took NLRC a long time to resolve the case because some of the workers, who are with the group of Cuizon are also members of one or the two other groups. With this, the agency had ordered the workers to submit their memorandum or position paper.

ACMDC, which used to be the biggest copper mining firm in Asia, employed about 10,000 workers when it was operating. Most of the workers have already been paid their wages and benefits after the firm closed in 1994 due to the drop in copper prices, labor problems, and ballooning debts. - Flor Z.Perolina and Wenna Berondo