NPA raids road project site, burns heavy equipment
BANSALAN, Davao del Sur—Communist guerrillas attacked a road repair site here on Friday, setting on fire heavy equipment belonging to a Chinese construction company involved in the project.
Senior Insp. Deozar Almaza, Bansalan police chief, said four guerrillas riding in motorcycles arrived at the project site, Barangay Dolo, past 11 p.m. on Friday and proceeded to where the units of heavy equipment, owned by Chinese firm Qingjian Group, were parked.
Qingjian has been concreting portions of the Davao del Sur-North Cotabato highway.
Almaza said the guerrillas disarmed guard Marlon Auza and introduced themselves as members of the New People’s Army (NPA) to construction workers.
They poured gasoline on a backhoe, payloader, grader and another piece of equipment then set these on fire, said Almaza.
The town mayor, Edwin Reyes, said he ordered an investigation although it wasn’t clear what results he expected the investigation to yield.
Ricky Gu, project director of Qingjian, said the attack would briefly delay the road project although the firm would resume normal operations soon.
He said what the guerrillas burned were “major pieces of equipment.”
The NPA, which is waging what could be the world’s longest-running Maoist rebellion, warned corporations in Mindanao of more rebel attacks in retaliation for supposed abuses against workers and environmental destruction.
The military, however, said the guerrillas have no other motive for the attacks but to force the companies to pay so-called revolutionary taxes.
On Oct. 27, the rebels also torched a van owned by Japanese banana firm Sumitomo Fruits Corp. (Sumifru) in Makilala, North Cotabato.
Also in October, NPA rebels raided the compound of Sumifru in Compostela Valley and burned several pieces of equipment and facilities.
On Oct. 3, NPA rebels also stormed the compounds of three mining companies in Claver, Surigao del Norte, and razed over 100 pieces of equipment and facilities. Orlando B. Dinoy, Inquirer Mindanao
