AFP now Tiamzon pets’ guardian

CEBU, Philippines -  What helped the Armed Forces of the Philippines trace a couple, who are both high-profile rebel leaders of the country, in their hideout in San Fernando? Their pets.

And in an irony of sorts, since Benito Tiamzon and his wife Wilma are now behind bars and could not take care of their pet cat and dogs, the AFP Central Command K-9 unit is now the one watching over and feeding them.

“Temporarily the AFP will take care of the animals. And of course, kami na yong mag-provide ng food,” said Major Gen. John Bonafos.

The AFP Central Command commander does not mind, though, because he actually share a common bond with the Tiamzons, who technically are his enemies.

“Kung hindi ninyo naitatanong, (You might not have asked, but) I’m a pet lover also. Marami akong aso sa bahay (I have a lot of dogs at home),” he said.

Benito, the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army chairman, and his wife Wilma, the CPP secretary general, were arrested in Aloguinsan town last Saturday by virtue of warrants of arrest for murder and attempted murder.

Recovered from them were firearms, ammunition, laptop, 16 flash drives, among others.

Bonafos said that having known that the couple loves pets, they included the information in their monitoring of the Tiamzons’ whereabouts.

And sure enough, based on their intelligence gathering, they learned that a Tagalog-speaking couple who has lots of pets was renting a house in Barangay Sangat, San Fernando town.

“Part of the clue na nagamit, si Wilma ay mahilig sa (loves) pets,” Bonafos told a press conference.

The couple had with them two high-breed puppies (one is half-Shih Tzu breed) and a cat when they were arrested. The pets were recovered from the vehicles they were riding, which are now in the custody of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-7. 

While the Toyota Innova (YGY 897) was listed under another name, the Hyundai Starex (MDN 171) was owned by Rex Villaflor of Catanduanes, Pitogo, Makati City, who was also arrested along with the couple.

Bonafos added that the Tiamzons actually had two more dogs and two more cats, which they left behind in their safehouse under the care of one Juanito Sabellano.

“Lahat talaga ay apat na aso at tatlong pusa kaso ang dinala nila ‘yung tatlo lang (They had in all four dogs and three cats but only brought three with them when they got caught),” the Centcom commander said, adding that each pet has a monthly budget of P2,000 for food.

The three pets that were with the Tiamzons during their arrest are now under the care of the AFP and would be fed along with the trained K9 dogs. (FREEMAN)