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Wednesday, January 08, 2003
General denies getting illegal logging 'payola'
By Harley Palangchao
A high-ranking military officer based in Northern Luzon Monday decried as "dirty tactics" the statement of the New People's Army accusing him of receiving payola from illegal logging activities in Region 2.
Army Gen. Rodolfo Alvarado, commanding general of the 5th Infantry Division, in an telephone interview, assailed the NPA for fabricating intrigues against him for obvious reason to destroy his good reputation.
The NPA's Fortunato Camus Command of the Northeast Luzon Region, in a statement, claimed that contrary to Alvarado's accusation alleging the communist guerrillas of perpetuating illegal logging activities in the towns of Dinapigue, San Mariano and San Guillermo, it was the army that "provided (the) security of illegal logging companies in exchange for payola."
"Kabaligtaran ang akusasyon ni Alvarado. Sino nga ba ang direktang sangkot sa illegal na malawakang pagtotroso? Sino ba ang nagbabantay ng mga sawmill? Ng mga labasan ng troso? Ang nag-eeskort sa mga trak ng logging? Ang AFP mismo ang sangkot sa iligal na pagtotroso. Kinakasangkapan ito ng mga malalaking kapitalista sa pagtotroso, (Alvarado's accusation is the other way around. Who is directly involved in large-scale logging? Who are watching over the sawmills? The passage of lumbers? The escorts of logging trucks? The AFP itself is involved in illegal logging. It (AFP) is used as a weapon against big logging capitalists) " said Salvador del Pueblo, spokesman for the Fortunato Camus Command.
In a same statement, the NPA command also accused the family of Isabela Gov. Faustino Dy for allegedly in cahoots with the illegal loggers. Dy could not be reached for comment.
But Alvarado, in explaining his side, said that he was branded earlier as "The Green General" in recognition for his all-out-war policy against illegal logging in cooperation with concerned government agencies within his areas of jurisdiction.
The army general even boasted that the "Task Force Sagip Likas Yaman" of the 5ID launched 971 resource control operations in the year 2002 that resulted to the confiscation of 236,005 board feet of assorted illegally cut timber products.
He added that the Army division under his command has been adjudged nationwide as the best "Green Army" for planting 83,776 of assorted seedlings inside the camp.
In accusing the NPA, Alvarado said that the rebels are the real extortionists. "Pag di sila maka-extort, they sow terrors against the businessmen," Alvarado said, referring to the latest torching by the NPA of the logging equipment in Isabela worth almost P60 million.
(January 8, 2003 issue)
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