The Unlikely Victims of Kidnapping

Late last year 2013 in November, the Treasurer of the Province of Sulu, Mr Jesus Cabelin was kidnapped right inside his safe house in the Capitol Ground, Patikul, Sulu.

The presence of his arm guards and other helpers in the house seemed inutile to stop the razor-like kidnapping specialty of the "ASG".

The Provincial Capitol with its armed guards was just a few meters away from the Staff House of the Provincial Treasurer.

A few meters beyond the Building of the Capitol is the Sulu Provincial Jail House.

The kidnappers, which allegedly rode in an unmark Jeep, passed by many Military and Police detachments, but everyone missed out the incident.

Kidnapping spree

ASG was in a kidnapping spree in 2013 to early 2014. There must be a lot of unreported and undocumented cases of kidnapping in Sulu, but here is the list of the documented ones in GMA NEWS Online:

1. Armed men abduct DPWH truck driver, helper in Sulu
2. Kidnapped DOTC engineer in Sulu freed — military
3. Indie filmmakers abducted in Sulu showcased Moro pride in their work
4. Trader's son kidnapped in Sulu
5. Sulu kidnap victim escapes abductors
6. Abu Sayyaf abduct provincial treasurer in Sulu
7. Armed men grab couple in Sulu; military suspects Abu Sayyaf
8. 2 kids, nanny, driver abducted in Sulu
9. Driver loses life after thwarting abduction of public school teachers in Sulu
10. And so on and so forth.

The low incidence of recorded kidnapping

The official records in Jolo Police Station, however, has only two incidences of Kidnapping. That was because the kidnapping might have happened outside the periphery of Jolo according to one official.

Doc Raden Ikbala, the leader in BassaKao, discussed with the former Chief of Jolo Police Leva-Ley Lami-ing as to why was that so in this video.

Civilians become fearful

Because of the many incidents of kidnapping cases, of which many of them were unreported, the civilian population has reached the breaking point last March 2014. It must be admitted that some report of kidnapping incidents were indeed hoaxes, it still could not hide the ugly truth that there was a spate of kidnappings in Sulu.

The civilians went to the street and proclaim their hatred against kidnapping in March 14, 2014. There was an attempt to quell the rally, but by Allah's grace, it had pushed through.

One of the student leader, Mudzna Kahal, expressed in a very emotional way how she and the other students become affected by the spates of kidnapping in this video:

Miss Mudzna Kahal explained why was it so in this video:

But why quell the rally?

Firstly, it would "destroy" the image of Sulu, which might stop the development projects currently in full force. Okay, that's a cool reason, but we have been actually trying in our FB pages to show how beautiful Jolo really is, and hoping that foreigners will come visit Jolo. But if we are really comfortable of Sulu as a leader, why is there a need to discourage foreigners, especially the media, from coming down to Sulu?

Secondly, the Cocoy Tulawie's case was in full swing in March. The rally was mistakenly thought as a political rally, in the sense that, it might publicly call out support for the Cocoy Tulawie's case. Instead, we publicly declared in the rostrum at the Plaza Marina in Jolo during the Rally:

"Bang kita ha kawasa, ayaw natu' usalun in pagkidnap hasupaya hikalamma sin manga political rivalries natu'. Iban bang kita isab bukun ha kawasa, ayaw natu' usalun in issues of kidnapping ha supaya hipanghina' ha tau ha kawasa."

Thirdly, the BassaKao was trying to "high-falutinate" (nagpalaggu sin sibi'-sibi') the issue of kidnapping for their self-serving interests. Cool, but the issues of kidnapping were a recurrent issues. But there was no attempt from any government in Sulu to stop the problem. The kidnapped victims were released, but then, what would be our assurance that they won't get kidnapped another day?

Reactive not Pro-active

The solutions of our government in Sulu against kidnapping is only reactive. It is just waiting for someone to get kidnapped, then do something later.

What was their favorite course of action in February and March during the spate of kidnapping incidence? Peace and Order meetings and dialogues.

In the surface that's OK. It brings to mind, however, what Marcos has said, "We could not afford deadlocks. . . We could not afford waiting for the help while we Filipinos are dying."

When the Provincial Treasurer was kidnapped, the action made was to destroy all the informal settlers' houses living within the periphery of the Treasurer's Staff House.

This video was just after the kidnapping of the Treasurer. The informal settlers surrounding the capitol ground had been ordered to pack their things and leave unceremoniously.

Negotiations with the Settlers

But months later, the Provincial Governor Totoh Tan, because perhaps of the strength of the social media advocates, decided to talk with the informal settlers.

They came out with agreements that appealed to all parties.

They agreed on two things among others: 1) The extension of stay and 2) The reparation for the damages.

The informal settlers' stay was extended until March, but I think the extension had become longer than initially negotiated with as we still see some houses in the area recently. The kind Governor Totoh Tan also gave P1,000,000 cash to the settlers' organization.

The kidnapped Treasurer, Mr Jesus Cabelin, by the way had been freed last year, too. Ransom was hush-hush, but it was formerly established at P100M.

Jolo Sulu is a peaceful and lovely place

Despite the frequent misunderstanding, all of us together must do something to help build up a robust economy, stable peace and order, and prosperous city of Jolo.

It is not the task of the government alone to do that. Everyone must lend their helping hand.

MindPro, Ayala Malls, Glorietta are not government projects. The government, however, must remove all the thorns for the private sectors to do their magic.

Start it with ensuring Peace and Order in Sulu. With that we thank the former Chief of Police in Jolo, Police Chief Leva-Ley Lami-ing for the kind words after the Anti-Kidnapping rally in March 2014.

"This is a stepping stone para mabigyan natin ng wakas at solution ang problema sa ating bayan, itong series of kidnapping incidence and other high-profile crimes in our society."

Be blessed po!

Let us all love Sulu!

How the Pro-Kidnapping Groups Curtail Right to Decent Work in Sulu

Jolo, Sulu, the Land of Many Missed out Opportunities.

Missed out opportunities in Sulu looks like to have been orchestrated by the rich, powerful, and the famous in Sulu.

Let me explain why, and allow me to begin with the ARMM PSPB.

The hopefuls.

The ARMM Personnel Selection and Promotion Board (PSPB) was in Sulu last April 28-30, 2014. The PSPB was mandated to assess, screen and rank aspirants to government positions or promotion in the ARMM. It must ensure an equitable and fair process of selection and promotion of employees in ARMM. You will seek for them no longer, they had come to your door!

In the 24-year long history of ARMM, nothing of that sort happened where the applicants were sought to their own place, where they would pass through three gruelling phases of mental and personality tests:

Phase I: Registration and preliminary assessment:

The transparent list of vacancies.

Phase II: Computerized examination:

Applicants going through the computerized exam.

Phase III: Panel interview:

The members of the Interview Panel ask the applicants.

The happy CabSec Khal Mambuay-Campong with one of the job seekers in Sulu.

“Gone are the days that all are secret. Gone are the days that the job vacancies are not being publicized. Today, everything is transparent. We don’t give room for influence-peddling and other anomalies in the hiring and promotion of employees,” ARMM Cabinet Secretary and PSPB Chair Khal Mambuay-Campong.

What is ARMM?

ARMM stands for Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, one of the 17 regions in the Republic of the Philippines and the only one with "Autonomous" government, wherein it has its own Executive and Legislative branches of government, just like its national counterpart.

Article X Section 15 of the 1987 Constitution assures two autonomous regions in Muslim Mindanao and in the Cordilleras. But only the Muslim Mindanao said yes in the subsequent referendum.

PSPB missed out Sulu twice or thrice

While frequent updates about the conduct of the selection process in the ARMM website was posted last February and March, the schedule for Sulu had always been tentatively re-scheduled time and again. Reason: frequent incidence of kidnappings in Sulu in those months.

You might wonder: were the kidnapping scenarios played out to prevent the PSPB from coming to town on the scheduled dates? Were there plan to keep the old system of "palakasan" system to prevail in Sulu, where the recommendations of the powers-that-be were a sure bet to land a decent job?

It is still fun to remember now that when the #BassaKao tried to organize the people of Jolo to become indignant against the spate of kidnappings, the group was mercilessly attacked from all sides. They said the call for the mass action and protest was self-serving and childish.

The Anti-Kidnapping was successful

But the Anti-Kidnapping rally in March 14, 2014 was successful in many ways, for instance:

1) It encouraged the Regional Police Director Noel delos Reyes to send down additional policemen to contain the security risk;

2) It strengthen the PSPB's resolved to come down to Jolo after the pandemonium.

There were other advantages of the Anti-Kidnapping rally, but the #BassaKao was not too happy about the subsequent military operations in the hinterland. But what choice do we have?

We were calling out for milder options, for instance, the Ulamah's participation in the negotiation process. The Ulama, we believe, should lead the re-education of the kidnappers to please stop the activities of kidnapping. The kidnappers would surely listen to the enlightened words of the Holy Men.

But the surprising thing was that, the Ulama (not all), blatantly lead an Anti-Anti-Kidnapping rally by influencing people not to attend the Anti-Kidnapping rally because the #BassaKao, they claimed, would bomb themselves thrice during the event. They substantiated that claim by saying that the #BassaKao was trying to weaken the leadership of the Governor in the province. Further, they said, the BassaKao would put the blame on the local government unit when the bombing incident happened.

Surprising turn of events

A mass action in Plaza Marina in May 4 in support of the BBL.

When the March 14 Rally was about to be squeezed out like an empty toothpaste bottle -- all expected speakers had withdrawn because someone rung them up and scolded them not to attend -- an unexpected help from the Jolo town Mayor came as a nice surprise. The Mayor gave us the official Mayor's Permit for the rally.

But somebody called the Mayor up and reportedly quarreled with him about that. The mystery caller accordingly ordered the Mayor to take the permit back. When the Mayor did not agree with it, the mystery caller yelled at the Mayor and told the Mayor: "Kabus" and other unprintable words that made the Mayor's angry.

So the Mayor held his stand. He said the freedom of his people, the people of Jolo, should not be curtailed by their leaders. The people has the constitutional right for peaceful assembly.

And to give his stand more flesh and blood, the Mayor lent the BassaKao his workforce and a firetruck to clean up the venue, the Plaza Marina a day before the rally. The Mayor also ensured that the Barangay Police Action Team (BPAT), the Jolo Internal Defence Force (JIDF), and the Jolo Municipal Police Station (JMPS) would come to protect the rallyists. He also provided other things whenever the BassaKao found out something lacking from their preparation.

What was the Pro-Kidnapping counterpunch?

They turned off all forms of communications: TV, Cable TV, Radio, Cellular Phone signals. The electric lights was even dead the whole day that day! My friends said, those were just coincidences. What delightful coincidences, indeed.

Fortunately, the Jolo Municipal sound system with its own generator was put to good use that day.

Let's get back to the PSPB then

I was about to relate with you my own experience in failing the selection process, but let me talk about that another day. The post is already long, di ba?

Let me just share with you na lang this 50 possible questions that would have been asked in the Panel Interview. Study it, and wish you luck on your successful journey.

The following Common Interview Questions are shifted by Glassdoor Blog from thousands of interview reviews.

50 Most Common Interview Questions

1. What are your strengths?
2. What are your weaknesses?
3. Why are you interested in working for [insert company name here]?
4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?
5. Why do you want to leave your current company?
6. Why was there a gap in your employment between [insert date] and [insert date]?
7. What can you offer us that someone else can not?
8. What are three things your former manager would like you to improve on?
9. Are you willing to relocate?
10. Are you willing to travel?
11. Tell me about an accomplishment you are most proud of.
12. Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
13. What is your dream job?
14. How did you hear about this position?
15. What would you look to accomplish in the first 30 days/60 days/90 days on the job?
16. Discuss your resume.
17. Discuss your educational background.
18. Describe yourself.
19. Tell me how you handled a difficult situation.
20. Why should we hire you?
21. Why are you looking for a new job?
22. Would you work holidays/weekends?
23. How would you deal with an angry or irate customer?
24. What are your salary requirements? (Hint: if you’re not sure what’s a fair salary range and compensation package, research the job title and/or company on Glassdoor.)
25. Give a time when you went above and beyond the requirements for a project.
26. Who are our competitors?
27. What was your biggest failure?
28. What motivates you?
29. What’s your availability?
30. Who’s your mentor?
31. Tell me about a time when you disagreed with your boss.
32. How do you handle pressure?
33. What is the name of our CEO?
34. What are your career goals?
35. What gets you up in the morning?
36. What would your direct reports say about you?
37. What were your bosses’ strengths/weaknesses?
38. If I called your boss right now and asked him what is an area that you could improve on, what would he say?
39. Are you a leader or a follower?
40. What was the last book you’ve read for fun?
41. What are your co-worker pet peeves?
42. What are your hobbies?
43. What is your favorite website?
44. What makes you uncomfortable?
45. What are some of your leadership experiences?
46. How would you fire someone?
47. What do you like the most and least about working in this industry?
48. Would you work 40+ hours a week?
49. What questions haven’t I asked you?
50. What questions do you have for me?

I hope you found this useful. Be blessed po. Assalamu Alaykum wtwb!

The political giants in Sulu could have been afraid of reform, because many people not to their liking would have been appointed to the government under this present transparent selection process.

Video: Full Coverage of the March 14 Anti-Kidnapping Rally in Sulu

Doc Raden Ikbala together with a thousand people, who had enough of kidnapping in Sulu, converged in Plaza Marina, Jolo, Sulu to voice out their sentiments against kidnapping last March 14, 2014. 

The following are the full coverage of the event, dubbed as A Thousand People Indignation March and Blitzkrieg Rally Against Kidnapping in Sulu. 

The video is sub-divided into seven parts for easier uploading (on the uploader's end) and easier viewing (on ours).

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

The people's call was answered by the Manila Government, specifically the PNP-PRO-ARMM under the leadership of Police Director Noel delos Reyes. He sent down hundreds of PNP additional forces to address the security concern in Sulu. He also "relieved" the Jolo Police Chief and put PCI Junpikar Sitin as the new top cop.

The decision was very acceptable to the Tausug people. Now, the town of Jolo has become lovely and peaceful once again, because of the strict leadership of the Super Cop Sitin.

The Super Cop Sitin has also influenced other Chiefs of Police in other Municipalities in Sulu to emulate his manner of Police leadership.

Here's the video of Chief of Police Junpikar Sitin during the early part of his career in Jolo.

And here is the recent video of the Super Cop.

Do not be misled by his slow manner of delivering his speech and his apparent lady-like demeanor. You shall be in for a huge surprise. PCI Junpikar Sitin is the toughest Chief of Police, who have massive support base from the civilian population of Jolo, Sulu.

We hope that we could have the list of his accomplishments while in Sulu (and somewhere else, for that matter) so that we can post it sometime here in The Sulu Kris.

Let's keep our fingers cross.