Manila on alert against ABB<\/p>\n
MANILA (AFP): The Philippine police chief yesterday put all
\nunits on alert to guard against possible terrorist attacks after
\ncommunist assassins threatened to go after executives of foreign
\noil firms.<\/p>\n
Director General Recaredo Sarmiento said local police
\ncommanders, particularly those in Manila, should intensify
\nsecurity around gasoline company facilities and oil industry
\nleaders.<\/p>\n
His order came after the the Alex Boncayao Brigade (ABB), the
\nurban assassination team of the communist insurgency, warned they
\nwould attack oil executives for their pending petition to raise
\nstate-controlled fuel prices.<\/p>\n
Sarmiento said the PNP \"is not taking the threat lightly and
\ncautions all potential targets to be on the guard.\"<\/p>\n
The ABB has been blamed for killing over 100 policemen,
\nsoldiers and civilians in Manila in the 1980s. However, ABB
\nactivities have dwindled since the collapse of global communism
\nthat led to a bitter internal struggle within the local communist
\nmovement.<\/p>\n
The three major oil firms operating in the country --
\nPilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., Petron Corp. and Caltex
\n(Philippines) Inc. -- have asked the government to grant them an
\naverage increase of 1.19 pesos (0.04 cents) a liter on petroleum
\nproducts.<\/p>\n
But the Energy Department said the increase should only be an
\naverage 0.83 centavos per liter.<\/p>\n
Shell and Caltex are subsidiaries of the Royal Dutch Shell
\ngroup and US-based Caltex Petroleum Corp., respectively, while
\nPetron is split between the Philippine government and Saudi
\nArabian Oil Co.<\/p>\n
Leftist groups have already threatened to stage street
\nprotests if the government grants the petition of the oil
\ncompanies. Hikes in fuel prices have long been politically
\nexplosive in this country.<\/p>\n
\"These are emotional issues which have no business I think
\nbeing discussed in the forum we're talking about,\" said Caltex
\nPhilippines president William Tiffany, reacting to the street
\nprotests and the threat of the ABB.<\/p>\n
\"The difficulties we're having, having a fair and reasonable
\nreturn from the oil industry are blips on the screen\" which
\nAmerican firms considered before investing in the Philippines,
\nTiffany said, but he added that the Philippines remained \"one of
\nthe most exciting investment opportunities in the world.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/manila-on-alert-against-abb-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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