Blast rocks North Cotabato market, roadside bomb recovered

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – An explosion rocked the public market of Kabacan in North Cotabato on Monday evening, January 19.

Captain Joan Petinglay, spokesperson of the military’s 6th Infantry Division, said the explosion occurred at the fish section of the market at around 6 pm on Monday.

Recovered from the blast site were nails, disintegrated mobile phone parts, and burnt red and black wires, Petinglay said. 

No casualties were reported, which North Cotabato Governor Emmylou Taliño- attributed to community vigiliance.

“Our force multipliers initiated by LGUs and barangays, as well as civilian vigilance and cooperation helped our law enforcers. Hence, no casualty reported in another IED explosion in Kabacan Public Market. It’s for the PNP and AFP with their capabilities and intelligence to stop the proliferation of IEDs,” Mendoza said.

Meanwhile, another improvised explosive device was recovered by security forces in the nearby town of Pigcawayan on Tuesday morning, January 20, along with a  105-mm projectile with a triggering device and a walkie-talkie. 

On November 16, a powerful explosion ripped through a crowded area in front of Kabacan Pilot Elementary School which 1 civilian dead and at least 16 others wounded.

It was the second explosion at a North Cotabato public market in two weeks. On December 31, a powerful blast at a public market in Mlang town in North Cotabato killed one person and hurt 36 others.

On Sunday evening, January 18, a bomb blast toppled a tower of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines in Pikit town, causing massive power outage in the area.

Authorities are still conducting an investigation but military sources believe that the attacks are coordinated efforts by the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF)

The BIFF had denied the accusations, asserting that they only attack military installations. – Rappler.com