NPA blamed for chieftain's ambush in North Cotabato

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines - Local folks are convinced communist rebels were behind Sunday’s fatal ambush of a Manobo warrior chieftain in Magpet, North Cotabato.

The victim, Joel Bia-ong, whose tribal name is Datu Bahani, was riding his motorcycle when gunmen, positioned at one side of a road in Barangay Tagbak, blocked his path and opened fire with assault rifles.   

Barangay Tagbak is a secluded area northeast of Magpet municipality.

Magpet’s municipal police chief, Senior Inspector Felix Fornan, on Tuesday said investigators are yet to identify the culprits, who immediately fled to a nearby hinterland after the attack.

Local residents are certain the New People’s Army (NPA) was responsible for the fatal ambush of Bia-ong.

Stories and text messages have been spreading in the province since Sunday, purporting that Bia-ong was killed by NPAs for his being identified with the military.

NPA forces in Magpet and in nearby towns have been harassing chieftains of tribal groups lately on suspicions they are helping the military locate the whereabouts of rebel groups operating in areas they control.