4 Pangasinan private armies delisted

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, Philippines  – Four private armies in Pangasinan had been delisted while three more are being worked out by the provincial director to be removed from the list also, saying “there are no atrocities committed that can be attributed to them.” 

“We are planning to have them delisted because these private armies (in Pangasinan) are non-existing,” Senior Superintendent Rosueto Ricaforte, police director of Pangasinan, told local newsmen after he was quizzed by provincial board members on the peace and order status of the province the other day. 

He said there were initial seven private armies listed in Pangasinan but after careful review and recommendation to the higher Philippine National Police hierarchy, four of them had been delisted. 

He, however, apologized to newsmen for not revealing yet where these private armies are located as they are continuing to conduct intelligence information. 

Ricaforte however whispered to one board member where these private armies are after he also asked for the provincial legislators’ understanding for not identifying them in public as it is an intelligence infor­mation.

“But we are still continuously validating the three remaining private armies in the province and since there are no atrocities whatsoever that can be attributed to these three, we would recommend to the higher headquarters to have them delisted,” he told board members.