Ecija town police force sacked

The police chief of Carranglan, Nueva Ecija and his 23 men were sacked upon orders of Philippine National Police chief Director General Edgar Aglipay, for failing to thwart Wednesday’s attack by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.

Senior Superintendent Leopoldo Bataoil, PNP spokesman, said Senior Inspector Bert Bautista, the town’s police chief, and his men were relieved from their posts by their immediate superior, Senior Superintendent Alex Monteagudo, Nueva Ecija police director.

Senior Inspector Restituto Reyes was named as acting Carranglan police chief. Members of the 308th Provincial Mobile Group were reassigned to the town.

Bataoil said the entire Carranglan police force was held accountable for failing to thwart some 50 heavily armed guerrillas from raiding the municipal building and the local police station and carting away the service firearms of four policemen.

The guerrillas virtually held "hostage" the Carranglan town proper, even occupying the town’s church.

"Initially, all the police personnel in Carranglan were relieved from their posts. With regards to the liability of the officer-in-charge and those manning the police station (at the time of the attack), this is (the subject of a) pre-charge investigation to determine their culpability," Bataoil said.

The Arroyo administration has declared a unilateral Christmas truce with the communist rebels from Dec. 16 to Jan. 5. The Communist Party of the Philippines and the NPA, however, said they were still "studying the possibility" of agreeing to the ceasefire.