The pets of Communist Party of the Philippines chairman Benito Tiamzon and his wife Wilma were presented to the media on Thursday at the Central Command in Cebu. The pets were with the couple during their arrest on March 22.
MANILA, Philippines—The pets of the arrested top New People’s Army leaders consume roughly P14,000 worth of pet food a month.
This was revealed by the military’s Central Command on Thursday, when they presented to the media the pet dogs and cat that were with Communist Party of the Philippines chairman Benito Tiamzon and his wife Wilma when they were arrested over the weekend.
Lieutenant Jim Aris Alagao, spokesperson of the Central Command, said that the two dogs were of shih tzu breed and the cat was of Persian breed.
During the arrest of the couple in Aloguinsan, Cebu, the brand of the dog and cat food was “Royal Canine.” Alagao said that a pack of it is worth about P2,000.
The Tiamzons were arrested with five others last Saturday. They claimed they only brought pets with them and the firearms that were seized from them were “planted evidence.”
The pets will be turned over on Friday to the Island Rescue Organization, an animal welfare advocacy group.
The two dogs will be named “Ben” and “Wilma,” while the cats will be named “Joma.”
Joma is Jose Ma. Sison is the exiled leader of the CPP.
Alagao said they couldn’t think of any names and these were “incidental.”
There were other two dogs and two cats left behind in the house where the Tiamzon couple used to stay in Cebu. Alagao said they also used the same brand of pet food in the safe house, which means that the NPA couple shell out about P14,000 for their pets every month.
“Buti pa ‘yong alaga nila P14,000 mahal ang kinakain, yung kasama nila sa baba di natin alam kung anong kinakain. Sana magbalik loob na iyong nasa bundok,” Alagao told INQUIRER.net.
The four other pets are under the care of Juanito Sabellano, the owner of the house where the Tiamzons stayed in Cebu.
“We could say they have other sources of fund which we can only speculate,” Alagao said when asked where he thinks the Tiamzons get money.
On the field, the military accuses the members of NPA of resorting to threats, intimidation and extortion to be able to survive and create impression that they are a force to reckon with.
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