COTABATO CITY, Philippines — A thousand barangay watchmen on Wednesday vowed to immediately execute members and even sympathizers of the Dawlah Islamiya and Ansa’r Al-Khilafa they find in the city.
They promised it before Mayor Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi, Col. Jose Gongona of the Army-led anti-terrorism Task Force Kutawato, Senior Superintendent Victor Valencia of the city police and officers of the Army’s 5th Special Forces Battalion helping guard the 37 barangays here from terrorists.
More than 80 percent of the city’s 1,000 volunteer community watchmen supervised by barangay captains are Muslims who disagree with interpretation of verses in the Qur’an by the Abu Sayyaf and the Maute terror groups, now combined as the Dawlah Islamiyah, and by members of the Ansa’r Al- Khilafa.
Both groups claim allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and are espousing the persecution of Christians and of Muslims who do not agree with their version of Islam.
The local barangay tanods held an emergency assembly in the compound of the People’s Palace, seat of the city government, Wednesday afternoon to show solidarity against terrorism.
Gathering to address rumors of terrorist sightings
The gathering, attended by city officials led by Guiani-Sayadi and representatives from the police and the military, was organized to allay fears by residents who panicked the day before due to a confusing report insinuating a city-wide security lockdown by authorities and the circulation of text messages about alleged sightings of terrorists in riverside villages.
The city’s border with Maguindanao, where there is presence of the radical Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, isporous, crisscrossed by rivers that connect to the 220,000-hectare Liguasan Delta, a known haven of criminals and fanatical extremists.
Guiani-Sayadi, chairperson of the inter-agency city peace and order council, assured the public of the commitment of the barangay tanods to secure all of the city’s 37 barangays from terrorists.
Army agrees to arm 'tanods'
Gongona, pioneer commander of the Task Force Kutawato that was formed in April, said they will excuse the city’s barangay tanods from the ban on carrying of guns, as a consequence of the martial law in Mindanao, as long as they coordinate their community patrols.
Unlike in other parts of the country, members of government-accredited Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) in Cotabato City are armed with military-type assault rifles and .45 caliber pistols.
A firebrand barangay chairman, Johair Madag, said he and his subordinate-BPATs are just waiting for a chance to find misguided militants they plan to immediately kill to show their resolve to prevent their spread in the city.
“Araw-araw, naghahanap kami. Babarilin namin agad. Papatayin namin agad ang sino mang ISIS na makikita sa aming barangay,” Madag announced during the assembly, in the presence of reporters.
Guiani-Sayadi, a practicing lawyer and known for her iron-fisted policy in addressing domestic security concerns, advised her constituent-barangay captains to calmly perform their peacekeeping duties and seek guidance from the city government if confronted by legal issues hampering their efforts.
Guiani-Sayadi promised the BPATs and their barangay captains extensive legal assistance in case of controversies that may arise as they complement Malacañang’s war on terror and anti-narcotics thrusts.
All of the city’s 37 barangay captains support the Mindanao-wide martial law President Rodrigo Duterte declared after the May 23 outbreak of hostilities in Marawi City.
Marawi City is only 148 kilometers from Cotabato City via the Secretary Narciso Ramos Highway that cuts through hinterland towns in Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur where there are enclaves of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front that are covered by the group’s 1997 interim non-aggression pact with the national government.
Wesmincom to support anti-terror efforts
Lt. Gen. Carlito Galvez, Jr. of the Western Mindanao Command on Thursday said he understands the vengeful attitude of the BPATs in Cotabato City, obviously irked by the adverse effects of the activities of terrorists in Marawi City to the moderate Muslims in Mindanao who disagree with their ideology.
Galvez said he has directed the Army’s 6th Infantry Division in nearby Datu Odin Sinsuat town in Maguindanao to help the Cotabato City local government unit oversee its anti-terrorism efforts.
“We have armor assets and enough number of soldiers standing by to help quell any sort of threat to the safety of Muslims and Christians there in Cotabato City,” Galvez said on Thursday.
Galvez lauded LGU officials here and their constituent-barangay tanods for the intelligence support to government operations more than a week ago that led to the prompt arrest here of suspected Ansa’r Al-Khilafa members Nazzer Dilangalen, 57 and his 19-year-old accomplice, Abdul Rafi Esmael.
They have confessed to their being members of the ISIS-inspired Ansa’r Al-Khilafa, which first emerged in Barangay Palimbang town in Sultan Kudarat, but was driven away in late 2015 by personnel of the Philippine Marine Corps.