Two killed, six wounded in alleged NPA attack at Batangas school

By Ronron
May 15, 2007

Suspected communist rebels attacked early Tuesday morning a school in Batangas province where canvassing of votes was being held then, leaving two election workers killed and six others wounded.

Police officials said some 30 to 40 election inspectors and watchers were tallying the votes cast last Monday at Pinagbayanan Elementary School in Taysan town, Batangas when five suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) struck at around 3am yesterday.

Taysan police chief Sr. Insp. Elpidio Ramirez said the insurgents simultaneously opened fire and 1.5 liter-bottles of gasoline inside the school premises that they used to burn the school building.

The sudden entry of the bonnet-wearing suspects sparked a commotion among the school teachers and watchers, whose collective movement towards the gate of the school prevented the policemen and soldiers stationed some 50 meters away from the school building from immediately responding.

Acting Batangas Provincial Police Director Sr. Supt. Freddie Panen said that of the seven rooms of the school building, at least four were gutted down, together with two ballot boxes containing some election returns.

Firefighters in town put out the blaze at around 5am.

Panen said the suspects came from and left through the back of the school building, which is a mountain.

The incident left two women burned to death and six other persons wounded (burns, bruises and contusions). One of the fatalities, who were found at the comfort room of the burnt building, was identified as Merly Banaag, a teacher at said school.

Ramirez said the school, which was being used as Precinct No. 76-A in Taysan, represents 1,180 out of the 18,957 voters in said town.

“Accordingly, incumbent Mayor Hernando Villena garnered overwhelming votes, more than 1,000, in Barangay Pinagbayanan over (rival) mayoralty candidate Victor Portugal, Jr., who garnered 25 votes only,” said Chief Supt. Nicasio Radovan, Jr., Region IV-A Police Director.

It is not yet known if Villena will file a request to the Commission on Elections for the declaration of a failure of election in Taysan following the incident.

Panen said recovered from the school were two gasoline-filled 1.5-liter bottles and spent shells of M16 and caliber 45.

PNP chief Gen. Oscar Calderon said they suspect the NPA to be behind the attack because of the fact that the place is insurgent-infested.

“Our initial assessment is, who is behind this (attack)? The counting is already over and it looks like the incumbent mayor got more than 1,000 votes and the one tailing him has mere 25 votes only. So, it will not turn the tie if ever there is chaos. We have a suspicion that it’s possible the NPA did this to disrupt the conduct of elections,” Calderon told a news conference yesterday morning in Camp Crame.

“We could see now that the first to favor from the incident are the insurgents,” he added.

Calderon said he directed Panen to include in the investigation the possible lapses of the local police on site since they should have also secured the back of the school building, and not just the front gate.

They would also look into the possible transfer of policemen closer to the polling precinct instead of staying 30 to 50 meters away for quicker response to untoward incidents.

“I am asking my police director to include this in his investigation, the lapses, so we can improve our security measures in other precincts where canvassing is currently ongoing,” Calderon said./DMS