Sayyaf member runs for town councilor but loses

TABIAWAN, BASILAN , Philippines  - Military officials reported that a suspected Abu Sayyaf member wanted for his participation in the siege of Lamitan in 2001 had run and lost in his bid for councilor of Sumisip town in the May 10 elections.

The suspect, identified as Umar Ippong alias Uman Ippong, was arrested along with 14 other Abu Sayyaf during an encounter here last Saturday, according to Lt. Col. Eugenio Boquio, commander of the Army’s Scout Ranger Task Group Panther.

Boquio said it was not immediately known how Ippong was able to dupe local Commission on Elections (Comelec) officials in Sumisip to approve his certificate of candidacy that was filed under the alias Uman Ippong.

Comelec officials in Sumisip could not be reached when media tried to verify the background of the suspect.

Boquio also showed samples of the campaign posters of Ippong that were used during the recent campaign.

He said the posters also revealed that would-be councilor Ippong was supposedly a candidate of the local chapter of the Liberal Party (LP).

“Based on our information and intelligence reports, Ippong participated in the Lamitan siege in 2001,” Boquio said, referring to the siege of Lamitan hospital in Basilan after Abu Sayyaf bandits, then led by Khadaffy Janjalani and Abu Sabaya, kidnapped foreign and Filipino tourists from the Dos Palmas Resort in Palawan in 2001.

Both Janjalani and Sabaya were later killed in separate encounters with government troops.

The bandits took their hostages to Basilan and took over the compound of the Lamitan hospital before they escaped to the mountains with their captives, including American missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham.

Most of the hostages were released separately after allegedly paying ransom following months of negotiations.

Martin Burnham was killed while Gracia was rescued by government troops during a rescue operation in June 2002 in Zamboanga peninsula.

Military officials said Ippong and 14 other Abu Sayyaf members were captured by a Scout Ranger team that raided a camp at sitio Bohe Pange, Barangay Giuong in Sumisip.

“He (Ippong) has a standing warrant of arrest for his participation in the Lamitan siege,” Boquio added. Several soldiers, civilians and Abu Sayyaf members were killed during the siege.

The military said Ippong and the other captured Abu Sayyaf suspects are now undergoing tactical interrogation in a militant camp here.

Col. Elvin Velasco, 1st Marine Brigade deputy commander, said the 15 suspected militants are being investigated to determine their participation in the recent Isabela City bombing.