11 hurt in Quezon City shanty demolition

MANILA, Philippines – Eleven persons were hurt including a policeman and two media personnel during a clash between a demolition team and residents of a slum community in Quezon City yesterday morning.

Superintendent Edgardo Pamittan, commander of the Quezon City Police District-Station 11, identified the policeman injured as Police Officer 2 Alberto Cabuhat of the QCPD’s Special Weapons and Tactics unit. Cabuhat sustained injuries in his left arm after a pillbox exploded.

An unidentified number of residents from the destroyed shanties in Barangay Mariana were also brought to the hospital due to injuries sustained, according to Glenn Yemata, chief of staff of Quezon City Councilor Edcel Lagman, who has been assisting the affected families.

Yemata said some 200 families were affected. He said the demolition should not have pushed through since they were still questioning the demolition order before the court and the residents still do not have a place to relocate to. Pamittan said eight members of the demolition team and two mediamen suffered only minor injuries during the incident that happened at around 11 a.m. Pamittan said no policemen were involved in the scuffle during the start of the demolition of a shanty community at the corner of Broadway Avenue and 7th street in Barangay Mariana.

According to Pamittan, court sheriff Froctozo Loha arrived at around 10 a.m. in the area accompanied by some 50 members of a demolition team and 80 policemen from the QCPD. The move was to implement the order issued by Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 97 for the 7,000 square meter private property.

Pamittan said the brief scuffle started when residents started throwing rocks and a pillbox exploded.

But Yemata had a different version and said it was those from the demolition team who started throwing stones at the residents.

Pamittan said that he arrived in the area with more policemen after the scuffle to maintain peace in implementing the court order.

He said five more pillboxes were found in the area, which were allegedly planted by residents to prevent the demolition team from coming close.

Former vice president Teofisto Guingona appeared after the scuffle in hopes of stopping the demolition. But the demolition still continued.