AL-BARKA, Basilan -- The vice mayor of Sumisip town, Basilan escaped unscathed but his two security escorts were wounded in a roadside bombing Monday, March 27, perpetrated by suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits.
The police said the incident took place around 8 a.m. Monday at Crossing Katuli in the village of Tumahubong, Sumisip town.
Unharmed was Sumisip Vice Mayor Jul Adnan Hataman, the nephew of Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm) Governor Mujiv Hataman, while wounded were Dasid Karim and Turmi Asikim, both security escorts of Hataman.
Armm Governor Hataman said the vice mayor was aboard on a three-vehicle convoy, on their way to attend the People’s Day in Macalang, Al-Barka, at the time of the incident.
“He (Hataman) was unscathed since he transferred to the second vehicle. At first, he was on the lead car of the convoy,” Governor Hataman said at the sideline of the Peoples’ Day.
The Armm governor said the Abu Sayyaf bandits are targeting the local officials in this province since they are actively helping the military in flushing out the bandits in their areas.
Governor Hataman led the holding of the Peoples’ Day in the village of Macalang.
The event marked the liberation of Macalang from the hands of the Abu Sayyaf bandits, who for several years made the village as their stronghold.
The different line agencies of Armm have rendered free services to the thousands of residents of Macalang and other nearby areas in this town during the Peoples’ Day.
The Peoples’ Day also marked the restoration of governance in the village of Macalang.