Globe facility in Bohol attacked

By Ronron
February 5, 2008

Another facility of Globe Telecommunication was attacked in Bohol although officials are not blaming the communist rebels for the incident that happened over the weekend.

According to local police, the incident, which only damaged a cable wire of the facility that is connected to an antenna that provides cellphone signals, may have been perpetrated by former caretakers of the facility who were dismissed by the company.

SPO3 Dionisio Coscos of the Tubigon Municipal Police Station said Tuesday that the burning of the facility’s cable wire must have taken place at dawn of Sunday when the suspect or suspects could not be seen by nearby residents due to darkness.

The facility was located at a hilly portion in Barangay Guiwanon, Tubigon town, some 100 meters away from the highway, or one-and-a-half kilometers away from the town proper, said Coscos.

The incident, however, reached police only at around 4pm after Globe engineers and technicians discovered the damaged cable wire at around 2pm that day.

Coscos said complaints of the locales who are subscribers to Globe about the loss of signal prompted Globe management to check their facility in Barangay Guiwanon.

Coscos said Globe subscribers have been complaining since Sunday morning.

A check at the facility disclosed that the suspect/suspects gained entry through the perimeters of the gate by cutting off a portion of the cyclone fence.

The Globe staff also found out that the suspect/suspects used dried banana leaves to burn the cable wire.

“These show that the suspect or suspects were really familiar with the place and know which vital cable provides signal. If they were members of the New People’s Army, they would have just poured gasoline all over the place and set everything on fire,” Coscos said.

Besides, the nearby residents did not see any armed personalities in the vicinity of the facility since Saturday night, he said.

Coscos disclosed that the facility was not being guarded at the possible time of the attack because its caretaker does not have to be there 24 hours a day.

He speculates that the dismissed caretakers must have ill-feelings for the company, pushing them to attack the facility.

Globe management, according to him, has estimated the cost of damage at P300,000.

He said that since some residents still complain as of yesterday of poor Globe signal, then he surmises that the facility has not yet been totally repaired yet.

Coscos said investigators are now trying to focus on the former caretakers of the facility to shed light on the incident.

He said that the police will really solve the attack because the telecommunication facility is considered vital to local business and their daily living.

Several attacks dating a few years back against Globe facilities have been attributed by police and military to the NPA for alleged non-payment of the so-called “revolutionary tax.”/DMS