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Candidates
of the Kabalikat ng Mamayang Pilipino (Kampi) in Candijay
town dismissed reports that it was re-elected Mayor Sergio
Amora's opponents who planted the improvised bomb at his rice
mill discovered a day after the elections.
In
a letter dated May 21, 2007 to the CHRONICLE, signed by former
Mayor Florante "Toti" Cimagala, Kampi party-mates
led by mayoralty bet lawyer Monina C. Camacho, they vehemently
denied the accusation and branded the same as "false,
unfounded and irresponsible."
The
Cimagalas, who mounted a come-back against Amora's ticket
in the last elections but failed, reacted sharply to insinuations
of Amora's camp that the planting of the improvised bomb was
their handiwork.
Information
officer Judith Villamor of Candijay said in a phone interview
that police authorities uncovered the improvised bomb, using
two acytelene tanks, early morning a day after the polls,
inside the rice mill owned by Mayor Amora.
Quoting
police report, she said that the acytelene tanks discovered
by the mill caretaker, whom Villamor did not identify, were
connected to an electric circuit switch box of the rice mill
located at barangay Poblacion. She said investigators, in
an initial probe, speculated the bomb might be intended to
blow up the mill.
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Kampi
said that unless there are convincing pieces of evidence
as to the involvement of certain individuals, "you
can tag them as involved in a criminal incident."
Kampi
expressed doubts as to the veracity of the bomb threat,
saying that "why did the (mill) caretaker choose
to use another entrance instead of the main entrance
a few meters from which the acetelyne tanks were installed."
The
group says this could be an indication that Amora and
the caretaker had prior knowledge of the installation.
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As
to why the discovery of the bomb-planting was made to coincide
with the release of the election results early Tuesday morning,
May 15, 2007, the Kampi bets' statement pointed out, was questionable
enough considering Amora was already winning the mayoralty
race.
Kampi
said that "many people, however, strongly suspect that
the planting of the bomb was stage managed. That the bomb
was already stocked inside the rice mill ready for use by
the goons in the event the Mayor would lose in the elections
as the latter was hell-bent in winning the elections at all
cost for him to escape various charges of misuse of public
funds."
Kampi
said that the planting of the alleged improvised bomb might
be the plan of some individuals who were allegedly victims
of the "mayor's abuse of power and harassment in the
past."
But
whether this bomb planting is "staged," Kampi said
that the educated and decent people in Candijay "are
not inclined to believe it." (RVO)
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