‘… there is enough reason for a Senate investigation on this matter as it concerns security of Filipino lives and deterioration of peace and order at a time when the nation is trying to recover economically from the pandemic.’
THERE is a concerning increase in the incidents of abductions or kidnapping for ransom, as the Chinese-Filipino businessmen have reported to some lawmakers both in the House of Representatives and in the Senate, although the chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) continues to deny it.
Last week, a delegation from the Philippine Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (PCCCII) led by president Lugene Ang met with House minority leader Rep. Marcelino Libanan and reported 56 kidnapping incidents involving Filipino and Chinese nationals, including children, in the last 10 days. They wanted the House leader to make representations with the police and other law enforcers.
Ang claimed the kidnappers “are worse than animals,” using torture, intimidation and rape to get money. In some cases, they sold their victims to other kidnap groups. “These are unprecedented and beyond human comprehension,” he said.
The spate of kidnappings also made Sen. Grace Poe very worried as to prod her to ask the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs to look into the matter.
In her resolution, Senator Poe cited the kidnap-slay case of Eduardo Tolosa Jr., chief executive officer of Iraseth Pharma, whose remains were burnt for three days in an attempt to hide the crime. Tolosa was said to be carrying P5.7 million in cash and two expensive watches when he went missing. The PNP claimed that this particular case which ran for several months has finally been solved, with the surrender and confession of two men involved in the burning of the business executive’s body.
The Poe resolution also mentioned a traffic video, titled “Kidnapping sa Skyway galing airport,” where three vehicles are seen surrounding a white vehicle on an elevated Skyway and armed men are seen trying to open the immobilized white car.
Philippine National Police (PNP) deputy chief for administration Lt. Gen. Jose Chiquito Malayo disputed the PCCCII figures, saying there were only four recorded kidnap incidents this year. One of the four cases, he added, was related to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) and the kidnappers were foreign nationals.
However, a PNP Anti-Kidnapping Group report belied Malayo’s claim as it noted a 25 percent increase in kidnapping cases that target POGO workers. The PNP-AKG report showed 27 kidnapping cases from January to September. Of the figure, 15 were POGO-related, 11 were kidnapping-for-ransom cases and one was a casino-related case.
There are other abductions and attempted kidnappings of young girls that had been reported in the past two months, particularly in Palawan and Bulacan, even as the PNP spokesperson admitted that some cases in this spate of abductions might have remained unreported by the victims’ families.
In any event, there is enough reason for a Senate investigation on this matter as it concerns security of Filipino lives and deterioration of peace and order at a time when the nation is trying to recover economically from the pandemic.
