DAVAO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / June 9, 2014) – The New People’s Army on Monday accused government soldiers as behind the execution of a motorcycle taxi driver earlier accused by the military as a member of the communist rebel group in Davao del Norte province in southern Philippines.
A rebel spokesman Aris Francisco branded as “barbaric” the murder of 41-year old Wilfredo Estrebillo, who was killed on June 4 in the village of Mabantao in Kapalong town. Citing confidential reports, Francisco accused the 60th Infantry Battalion as behind the killing and condemned the attack on an innocent civilian.
“The barbaric killing of motorcycle driver Wilfredo Estrebillo showed that the notorious 60th Infantry Battalion is engaged in vindictive operations against civilians,” he said, vowing to give “revolutionary” justice for victim’s family.
Estrebillo was shot at least 13 times by his three passengers. Francisco said the Estrebillo was first to be killed by the military among the list of six motorcycle taxi drivers in the town that are all in the army’s order of battle.
He said the list was recovered from Corporal Rogelio Rosales, who was captured by rebels in May in the village of Florida also in the town of Kapalong.
Rosales was freed by the NPA on humanitarian grounds, but he was dismissed from the military after the rebel group recovered illegal drugs from his possession while arranging the delivery of illegally cut logs in the town.
The six drivers were suspected as members or supporters of the NPA after Rosales implicated them. The six men were included the so-called “hit list” of the military as part of its anti-insurgency campaign called Oplan Bayanihan.
Before he was killed, Estrebillo told his family and relatives that the military put him and other drivers under surveillance and accused them of transporting provisions to the NPA in Kapalong, an allegation he and the others had strongly denied.
He also told his family that government soldiers were harassing them in army checkpoints. Among the drivers in the military hit list were Eleazar Batobato, Loloy Labaho, Undo Labaho, Dodong Labaho, and Joy Eway, who was also harassed by soldiers.
There was no immediate statement from the military about the accusations. (Mindanao Examiner)
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