DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/07 August) — North Cotabato Governor Emmylou “Lala” Taliño-Mendoza has appealed to her constituents to be vigilant in reporting threats following the blast in Midsayap town on Wednesday dawn.
A still undetermined type of bomb went off at the ground floor of the Tenerio Bldg. in Sto. Nino St., Poblacion One in Midsayap, North Cotabato at 3:30 a.m. but there were no reported casualties, Col. Dickson Hermoso, spokesperson of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division said.
Mendoza also urged the police and military to beef up their intelligence work to thwart any untoward incidents as the province is about to hold the week-long Kalivungan Festival starting August 24, culminating on September 1, its 99th Foundation Anniversary.
She appealed to her constituents “to be vigilant and to take part in peace efforts in their own ways.”
“I condemn all forms of injustices, lawlessness especially during the Holy Month of Ramadhan,” the governor said in a text message.
On Monday, eight persons were killed and 30 others were injured when a bomb exploded in Cotabato City, 47 kilometers away from Midsayap.
The explosion in Midsayap damaged portions of the area fronting the M. Lhuiller shop on the ground floor and the canopy and glass portion of a nearby salon.
The building also houses the “Wow FM” radio station on the second floor.
Radio station owner Rolly Sacdalan said that since Tuesday they had been receiving threats that a group was going to sow terror in the area.
Personnel from the Army’s 32nd Explosives and Ordnance Team rushed to the area and found “fragments believed to be from a mortar round.” (Keith Bacongco and Ferdinandh B. Cabrera/MindaNews)