Maguindanao capitol looted

BULUAN, Maguindanao , Philippines  – Unidentified armed men took advantage of the long holiday vacation to engage in a looting spree at the provincial capitol in Shariff Aguak town.

Maguindanao Commission on Elections (Comelec) officer Estela Orbase said almost all of the offices inside the provincial capitol were ransacked.

“They took away not only the valuable things but also bond paper, paper clips and kitchen utensils. There were traces of combat boots. We are at a loss as to how they were able to enter because there were a lot of police and military guarding the capitol,” Orbase said.

Orbase believed the looting took place during the long holidays, although they only learned about the incident this week when office resumed.

She said they are still checking if there were important Comelec documents stolen.

The Comelec, however, maintained that all election records in Shariff Aguak remain intact despite the reported looting.

Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said the provincial building appeared to be the target of the alleged looters or vandals and the Comelec office just happened to be housed inside the building.

“It seems that the provincial building itself was the one ransacked. Actually it looked more like the place was vandalized because it was practically unoccupied and people went into the building and took some plates,” Jimenez pointed out.

“Some glasses in the building were broken, but no records were taken from the Comelec office,” Jimenez added.

But the looting was directed not only at the capitol building.

Armed men also raided Shariff Aguak, Mamasapano and Datu Unsay towns and took away farm animals of the residents.

“They were wearing camouflage uniform and were armed. Then they took our animals, particularly the carabaos and goats,” a resident said.

A certain Bai Sandra Macalamcong of Shariff Aguak, however, said the residents are still thankful for the presence of military and police troops in Maguindanao.

Without the authorities, she said, the province would have already been run over by the breakaway group of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

SBMA shooting could open Pandora’s box

Meanwhile, police investigators are looking at the possibility that the shooting inside Subic Bay Freeport that killed two law enforcers could be linked to the continuing war between the Ampatuans and Mangudadatus.

The suspect, Ali Mohamedin Panegas, 39, a resident of Buluan who claimed to be one of the bodyguards of Buluan, Maguindanao Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu, confessed to police and local media that his colleagues are out to kill him.

“They wanted to kill me because they thought I was the one feeding information to the Ampatuans,” Panegas said in Filipino.

Police said they are preparing just in case Sen. Richard Gordon calls them on Tuesday to attend a Senate inquiry into the shooting.

Gordon, who served as Olongapo City mayor and as Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chair from 1992 to 1998, said the Senate Blue Ribbon committee would conduct the probe. He said the inquiry would start within three days after letters of invitation are sent to the officials concerned.

Police Station Commander Chief Inspector Arthur Salida said double murder charges have been filed against Panegas before the Olongapo City Prosecutor’s Office.

Salida said that they are now preparing to transfer the suspect to the Olongapo City Jail inside Camp Cabal in Barangay Barretto while they await the issuance of a commitment order from the court.

Police investigation showed that it is “possible that the attack was aimed at another group of men who were present inside the SBMA Law Enforcement office when the shooting happened.”

Panegas told The STAR that he saw his colleagues who were out to kill him coming out of a room in one of the SBMA law enforcement department offices.

“I got my gun just to protect myself,” Panegas alleged.

However, SBMA guards Edwin Nopal and Rexie Alinea wrestled with him and grabbed his .45 pistol, which discharged, killing Seferino Abadia, 60, and retired SPO4 Delfin Orines.

“The shooting was really an accident. It was not my intention to kill,” Panegas said, as he apologized to the families of the victims.

The STAR was able to contact the wife of Panegas, Noveba, who also confirmed that her husband works as a security aide of the Mangudadatus.

“He has been working for Vice Mayor Mangudadatu for a long time,” Noveba said, as she appealed to the vice mayor to help her husband as well as the victims in the shooting incident in Subic.

SBMA administrator and CEO Armand Arreza said that the incident is a testament to the hazards that law enforcement officers face everyday in the performance of their duties.

“We assure the Freeport community and the public that the SBMA Law Enforcement Department will continue to serve them and remain steadfast in their commitment to secure their investments, property and lives, even at the risk of their own,” Arreza said. - Mayen Jaymalin, Bebot Sison