Marines prevented rebel attack in Sultan Kudarat

SULTAN KUDARAT, Philippines -  The Marines rebels ambushed in Kalamansig town last week had unknowingly prevented an attempt to rob villagers of money and grains in their barns, officials said Friday.

A neophyte serviceman, Private Albino Bahian III of the 2nd Marine Battalion, was killed in the bloody March 17 incident that also left nine of his companions wounded.

They were attacked by New People’s Army (NPA) guerillas while on their way to Sitio Tinagdagan in Barangay Hinalaan in Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat to validate the reported presence there of gunmen collecting “protection money” from residents.

Community sources, among them tribal elders, said the NPAs, led by Tirso Sakudal, actually planned to rob local residents of food and other valuables but failed when the Marines arrived, sparking an encounter.

Sakudal, also known as “Mac-Mac,” is wanted for heinous offenses, including cattle theft, extortion and large-scale propagation of marijuana plants. He is a senior leader in the NPA's self-styled Guerilla Front 73.

“Their plan went wrong when they sensed that heavily-armed Marines were approaching Sitio Tinagdagan,” said one of the sources, who requested anonymity for security reasons.

Local officials in hinterland towns in Sultan Kudarat have confirmed that six NPAs were killed when the Marines returned fire while three more wounded in the ensuing firefight while being carried away from the scene by companions.

Major Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr., commander of the Zamboanga City-based Western Mindanao Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said the Marines were sent to Barangay Hinalaan only to validate reports purporting that gunmen were seen encircling farming enclaves there.

Kalamansig and nearby seaside towns in Sultan Kudarat are more known as bastions of the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, where the NPA’s presence was never been felt until Friday’s incident that caused panic among local residents.

Kalamansig Mayor Ronan Eugene Garcia, chairman of the municipal peace and order council, said the NPA has lately been trying to expand its operation in certain highland barangays in the municipality that are populated by indigenous tribal folks.

“We don’t want the NPAs in our municipality,” Garcia said on Friday.

He said he has been receiving persistent feedback that the NPAs who ambushed the Marines were out to collect money from farmers and divest them of rice and corn grains in their barns.

The rebels fled to forested mountain ranges at the border of Ninoy Aquino, Sultan Kudarat and adjoining Surallah and Tiboli municipalities in South Cotabato after a two-hour combat with the Marines.

Galvez and officers of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division in Camp Siongco in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao on Tuesday led traditional honors for the slain Bahian, who was enlisted just recently in the Philippine Marine Corps.

Galvez said he was saddened with the death of Bahian.

“He was killed in line with duty, upholding his sworn duty as a soldier,” Galvez said.