Truck donated by Frasco torched

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu Fifth District Representative Vincent Franco “Duke” Frasco has decried the burning of a truck, which he bought out of his own pocket and donated to the four municipalities of the Camotes Islands for public use.

Frasco posted the update on Facebook yesterday along with three photos showing the burnt passenger door of his donated truck where the words “Duke Frasco, Paglaum sa Kinto” could be barely made out.

“A truck which I bought with my personal funds, and gave to service the people and the 4 towns of Camotes was burned down at dawn today (yesterday) in the Municipality of San Francisco,” his post read.  The towns are San Francisco, Tudela, Poro and Pilar.

Residents passing by Barangay Unidos where the truck was parked outside the driver’s house reported that the incident happened at around 1 am.

In his post, he lambasted the culprits, saying that the arson was not merely a blow against him but also the residents of the islands to whom the truck was intended for.

“The harassment, intimidation, violence, and destruction inflicted upon the people of the 5th District has gone on for decades. Now that I have become the Congressman of the District, the people are being punished for exercising their right to choose change, and to have hope,” he said.

Frasco added that the act might be a politically-motivated threat.

“While they continue with their age-old tactics of violence and fear, we will continue the change we have started,” he said.

The FREEEMAN reached out to Frasco for an interview on the steps to be taken in response to the arson, but he was not able to reply as of press time.

For her part, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, Frasco’s mother-in-law, told The FREEMAN to refer to her comment on Frasco’s post for her statement.

In the comment section, Garcia wrote:

“This is idiotic. And pointedly reminiscent of the all-too familiar jurassic tactics of the dirty politics that had so engulfed the 5th.”   KQD (FREEMAN)