‘Resurgence,’ VACC says of kidnappings
Crime watchdog Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) warned on Monday against the “resurgence” of kidnap-for-ransom activities, which the group’s leader said could deal a “direct blow” to the economy.
This was the latest affirmation of the return of criminal activities targeting mostly Chinese-Filipinos—a disturbing trend in peace and order last noted three decades ago in the 1990s.
Last week, civic leader Teresita Ang-See urged President Marcos to order a thorough scrutiny of the country’s police force, as she cited three kidnapping cases in just a span of five weeks—the most recent being the abduction and murder of businessman Anson Tan.
The bodies of Tan (also known as Anson Que) and his driver Armanie Pabillo were found on April 9 at a roadside in Rodriguez, Rizal—almost two weeks after they went missing and a day after Tan’s luxury minivan was found in Project 6, Quezon City.
Tan and Pabillo were last seen on March 29, the day they were believed to have been abducted. Police said their bodies bore bruises and signs of injury and strangulation.
In an interview with ANC on Monday, VACC president Arsenio Evangelista said of these crimes: “It’s a personal tragedy for the victims but this is a direct blow [to] our economic future.”
“This is what we are more worried about. When peace and order is down, there will be a capital flight among the businessmen,” he added.
“Peace and order is a national issue,” Evangelista said. “All of us are affected. This is a call for the leadership to bring back the trust and confidence of Filipinos, the business sector and future investors.”
‘Clear sign’
Regarding Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla’s order last Friday creating an inter-agency task force that would handle these kidnapping cases, Evangelista said, “The time the DOJ (Department of Justice) created a special investigation task force against kidnappings, it’s a clear sign there is a substantial rise in cases of kidnapping.”
Remulla had also raised the possibility of Pogos (Philippine offshore gaming operators) being involved in Tan’s kidnapping and murder. Criminal activities linked to Pogos and targeting Chinese nationals have become another trend in the recent spate of crimes.
But this prompted former congressman Jose Christopher Belmonte, a lawyer for the Tan family, to issue a statement on Saturday saying that “The family of the late Anson Tan firmly disputes allegations that their father was involved in Pogo transactions.”
Ang-See told the Inquirer in an earlier interview that the “suspects or criminal syndicates are Pogo-related, no doubt about that” and that “even in the Andy Wan case, the perpetrators were Pogo-related. But the family? No.”
Andy Wan is the 14-year-old Chinese-Malaysian student who was kidnapped in Taguig City on Feb. 20 but was released by his abductors almost a week later. His abductors, however, had also cut off his right pinky.
The Philippine National Police and Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said no ransom was paid to the abductors, who initially demanded $20 million.
‘Muscle men’
Last Thursday when Ang-See cited the kidnapping cases, PNP chief Gen. Rommel Marbil also relieved Brig. Gen. Elmer Ragay as chief of the PNP’s Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG).
Ragay’s relief also followed on the heels of the PNP’s investigation into Wan’s kidnapping.
Ang-See had recommended having the AKG “reduced again to a small task force,” citing the lack of focus on its mandated task and how the unit has merely become “a stepping stone for promotion.”
Evangelista noted that kidnap-for-ransom activities had returned because of the “partnership of Filipino muscle men,” as he called law enforcers, and their “big bosses,” whom he did not identify.
“Kidnap-for-ransom has now become a high-gain business and low-risk,” he said.
