Lingig mayor threatens to resign over NPA raid

Lingig, Surigao del Sur — Mayor Roberto "Jimmy" Luna said he plans to resign from office if his request for an Army camp in this remote town will not be granted by the national government and the Philippine Army.

"We are only brave now because these soldiers with heavy artillery are with us but what if they leave Lingig soon?" Luna asked.

"We appeal to President Arroyo and the Department of National Defense (DND) to heed our request that a military camp be put up here and provide social services to our people," Luna said.

Earlier, relieved Lingig police chief Inspector Evelyn Pastelero Frugalidad told The STAR in the presence of Caraga Police Regional Director Chief Superintendent Rene Jamolod Elumbaring that her men were overwhelmed by the huge number of communist rebels who surrounded the municipal hall.

She claimed the rebels were armed with high-powered firearms when they raided the town’s police office which is located just beside the municipal hall.

The woman police chief said she believes some 500 NPA rebels are still hiding in the town’s vicinity.

Lingig town, a third class municipality with a total of 18 barangays and a population of 12,000, is located at the southernmost tip of Surigao del Sur and is surrounded by mountain ranges near the boundary of Davao Oriental and Agusan del Sur.

In an interview, Luna said the presence of an Army contingent from the 36th Infantry Batallion Army headed by Lt. Col. Joel Madarang is temporary.

The 36th IB headquarters is located over 100 kilometers away from this town in Barangay Sta. Maria, Trento, Agusan del Sur.

Although the Lingig municipal police office has 21 cops, one of the biggest police contingent among 71 towns in the Caraga Region, local officials said the increasing number of communist sympathizers has made it difficult for the police to fight insurgency. — Ben Serrano