Marines destroy Abu-owned marijuana plantation in Sulu

By Bong Garcia Jr.

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Marines recently raided and uprooted millions of pesos worth of marijuana plants believed to be cultivated by Jema’ah Islamiyah (JI) militants and Abu Sayyaf bandits in the hinterlands of Sulu, it was learned on Tuesday.

The Marines stumbled on the 1.5-hectare marijuana plantation while scouring the hinterlands of Sulu, in pursuit of the JI militants and Abu Sayyaf bandits.

Col. Eugenio Clemen, Third Marine Brigade commander, said the plantation was raided around 10:45 a.m. on Thursday by the 4th Marine Battalion Landing Team, led by Lt. Col. Ariel Caculitan, in the remote village of Binuang, in Talipao town. A total of two truckloads of grown marijuana plants with an estimated market value of P2 million were uprooted, Clemen said. He said Maimbung Mayor Najib Maldisa led the local residents in burning the uprooted marijuana plants on Friday in barangay Matatal, Maimbung.

Clemen said the discovery and seizure of the marijuana plantation is a big step toward cutting the sources of funds of the militants and Abu Sayyaf bandits in Sulu.

“By denying them sources of funds, we are in effect denying them the capability to buy firearms and undertake terroristic activities,” Clemen said.

The Western Mindanao Command earlier disclosed that there are at least 10 JI militants hiding with the Abu Sayyaf bandits in Sulu.

The Joint Task Force Comet commander, Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, congratulated the Marines for a job well done.

Sabban assured Sulu residents that military forces in the area are also containing the illegal activities of the Abu Sayyaf bandits, such as drug trafficking and kidnapping for ransom, while relentlessly pursuing the bandits and the JI militants. He said efforts to locate the kidnappers of ABS-CBN senior reporter Ces Oreña-Drilon, cameraman Jimmy Encarnacion, assistant cameraman Angelo Valderama and peace advocate Octavio Dinampo continue.

Drilon, Encarnacion, Valderama and Dinampo were separately released last month.

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Marines destroy Abu-owned marijuana plantation in Sulu

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Marines recently raided and uprooted millions of pesos worth of marijuana plants believed to be cultivated by Jema’ah Islamiyah (JI) militants and Abu Sayyaf bandits in the hinterlands of Sulu, it was learned on Tuesday.