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Military ‘Blamed’ for NPA Raid of Davao Prison

Published: April 9, 2007   |     |     |   Subscribe: RSS or Email    

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Not-So-Welcome Guests. The main gate of the Davao Prison and Penal Farm, in Braulio Dujali town, Davao del Norte (davaotoday.com photo by Boy Bagwis)

The top official at the Davao Prison and Penal Farm has practically blamed the military for the raid on Sunday by the New People’s Army of the correctional facility formerly known as the Davao Penal Colony (Dapecol). In the raid, one of the most daring in the Philippines in years, the communists carted away more than a hundred assorted firearms without firing a single shot.

By Cheryll D. Fiel
davaotoday.com

DUJALI, Davao del Norte — The top official at the Davao Prison and Penal Farm has practically blamed the military for the raid on Sunday by the New People’s Army of the correctional facility formerly known as the Davao Penal Colony (Dapecol). In the raid, one of the most daring in the Philippines in years, the communists carted away more than a hundred assorted firearms without firing a single shot.

Superintendent Catalino Malinao, in charge of the prison, defended his guards, who were caught by surprise as the guerrillas, posing as members of the military’s Task Force Davao, went in swiftly and quietly at the most ungodly hour on Easter Sunday.

Malinao denied security was lax. In fact, he said in an interview, they had been meeting regularly — Mondays and Wednesdays — about security and had been closely coordinating with the military and police detailed in nearby areas, particularly the 73rd Infantry Battalion in Santo Tomas town and the 401st Infantry Brigade in Kapalong town. All of these military units, supported by company guards of the Tadeco banana plantation, essentially surround the whole province of Davao del Norte.

“We have been relying on them since they have checkpoints around this area,” Malinao said of the military. As of post time, the military has not made any statement as to why the guerrillas managed to slip this security cordon.

Malinao stressed that they have done everything to secure the area despite the limited number of security detailed in the facility located in Braulio Dujali town, Davao del Norte. “We have done everything that we could, but we lack personnel,” he explained.

Posing as soldiers seeking help for their broken van, members of the NPA’s Merardo Arce Command raided the armory at 1:30 a.m. Sunday.

Malinao said the guards on duty saw around 50-60 men aboard vans approaching the gate. Some of the men disembarked and feigned pushing one of the vans that appeared to have conked out.

According to the guards, the men were wearing complete military uniforms with the insignia of the Task Force Davao, a military unit that deployed in Davao City and nearby areas to help the police keep the peace.

One of the rebels approached the guards and asked if they can leave the van inside the compound. They then held the guards at gun point, disarmed them, and went straight to the armory. The raid, Malinao said, took about about 10 minutes.