ANGELES CITY, Philippines – Armed men clad in military uniform burned the equipment used to build the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) in Barangay San Manuel in Tarlac City at around 11 a.m. last Saturday, police reports stated.
The report said the armed men, suspected to be members of the New People’s Army, poured gasoline and set on fire three backhoes, a crane and a grader owned by RD Policarpio Construction.
Following the incident, all the members of the Community Police Action Center (COMPAC) in Barangay San Manuel, Tarlac City have been relieved.
Senior Superintendent Alfredo Corpus, Tarlac police provincial director, signed the relief order of Senior Inspector Romy Perez and his 10 personnel last Monday.
Corpus said he ordered the relief of the entire San Manuel COMPAC team for failing to monitor the activities of the rebels. He also cited reports that the COMPAC team did not respond immediately to the burning incident.
A police report stated that the armed men entered the construction site at around 11:30 a.m. The rebels reportedly torched the equipment to protest the non-payment of the farm lots of Tarlac farmers affected by the construction of TPLEX.– Ding Cervantes, Ric Sapnu