Escudero: Unreported kidnappings rising

Senator Chiz Escudero. INQUIRER file photo

MANILA, Philippines –  Senator  Francis  “Chiz” Escudero on Tuesday expressed  alarm over the  alleged growing  number of unreported kidnappings in the country, forcing  some students  from going to school  for at least two weeks.

Escudero said he himself has been getting  such reports from friends who knew some victims of   kidnapping.

“Ang dami kong kaibigan na nag-aaral sa iba’t ibang exclusive  schools na iyun ang nirereklamo. Ang dami daw nilang mga kilala na diumanoy  kinidnap yung kanilang anak, na diumanoy hiningan ng ganito,”  he said.

(I have a lot of friends who are complaining about  it. They said they knew many people whose kids had been kidnapped and had been asked  to  pay ransoms.)

“In fact  may  ilan pa na hindi pinapasok ang kanilang mga anak for the next two to three weeks, isang bagay na kelangang tingnan nang malalim at masusi ng Philippine National Police. Kung hindi totoo, well and good pero paano kung totoo at hindi lang nire-report sa kanila?’

(In fact, there are even some parents who decided  not to send their kids to school for the next two to three weeks, something that the Philippine National  Police should  look into it. If it’s not true, then well and good but what if it’s true  and these were not just reported to them?)

The senator said he also received reports of more kidnappings involving  Chinese-Filipinos but these were not also reported to authorities supposedly because the ransom only involved  about  P500,000 to P5 million.

Escudero, chairman of the  Senate committee on finance, said  he would  raise the issue when the Department  of the Interior and Local Government  headed by  Secretary Manuel Roxas II faces the Senate to  defend  its  budget proposal for 2015.

“Siguro panahon na para tingnan at beripikahin ang mga insidenteng yan at tingnan kung ano ang magagawa nila para mapigilan ito,”  Escudero further said.

(Maybe  it’s time to look into this and verify these incidents  and find  out what  they can do  to prevent it. )

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