Was Zambales governor kidnapped and ransomed?

IBA, Zambales — Was he or wasn’t he kidnapped by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels and set free after ransom was paid?

A source with NPA links said Zambales Gov. Vicente Magsaysay was kidnapped by the rebels because of a project that had adversely affected residents of Iba, among other complaints against him.

The source did not give details on how the governor was snatched, except that ransom was paid for his freedom.

But Magsaysay told The STAR in a telephone interview that it was his driver, Daniel Valdez, who was kidnapped by the NPA, and not him.

"My driver was abducted at about 6 p.m.," he said.

Magsaysay said he negotiated for the release of Valdez, who was tied up and abandoned by the rebels after taking the truck he was driving.

Magsaysay said Valdez, his hands still tied, flagged down a Victory Liner bus along the highway near a quarry site in Barangay Sta. Barbara here.

"It was the bus conductor who removed the binds on his hands," he said.

Magsaysay said the truck was also recovered in the same area about an hour later.

"(Valdez) and his truck were found safe at about 8 p.m., so how could there have been negotiations for ransom over such a short time?" he asked.

However, the governor, whose number of security men has been beefed up since the alleged incident, could not adequately explain his role in the reported kidnapping.

Neither could Magsaysay clarify his earlier statement on his role as negotiator for the supposed release of Valdez.

Central Luzon police director Chief Superintendent Vidal Querol said the reported kidnapping of Magsaysay was supposed to have happened last June 7.