Friday, July 16, 2004 Angelo's family in safe place: Mexico mayor By Albert B. Lacanlale
MEXICO -- Angelo dela Cruz's immediate family members are confident he would be released by Iraqi militants holding him hostage, said Mexico Mayor Teddy Tumang, who, however, refused requests to reveal their whereabouts.
Attempts by the media to get the mayor to reveal the family's location proved futile, as Tumang's resolve to deny them the information remained firm.
He said he was consistently talking with the family of dela Cruz, a truck driver who was taken hostage by Iraqi militants last week and threatened with beheading if the Philippines would not withdraw its humanitarian forces from Iraq.
In his recent talk with one of dela Cruz's children, Jullyses, Tumang said he learned that recent developments have raised the family's hopes concerning the trucker's fate.
Tumang said he regularly visits dela Cruz's family to find out how they are.
Government brought dela Cruz's family to an undisclosed location inside Clark to prevent them from feeding information to the media that might jeopardize efforts to negotiate with the truck driver's captors.
The move happened a few days after news of dela Cruz's kidnapping broke out.
The mayor added that Mexicanos, just like dela Cruz's relatives, are only preparing for his safe homecoming.
In his last visit to the family, Tumang said he turned over to dela Cruz's sisters in Barangay Buenavista the P10,000 financial assistance donated by Candaba Mayor Jerry Pelayo.
Tumang thanked Pelayo for the support, which he said is badly needed by the family. He said they have been unable to focus on their livelihood since their ordeal started.
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