Magkono

Mention the name Xanthostemon verdugonianus Naves to avid collectors of fine wood decorative pieces and top quality wooden furniture and you are certainly going to get more than your fair share of interest. The latter, of course, is simply the scientific name for the Magkono tree and the source of the extremely dense, heavy, dark-hued and now very rare species of Philippine hardwood that only a few places in the Philippines, Lianga included, is known to produce.

Wood from the Magkono tree is often called "ironwood" for its reputation as the hardest of the Philippine hardwoods. It is so hard that cutting down a mature tree of the species can take two or three days when a similar sized tree of another type can take just two to three hours. Most modern loggers use diamond-point saws to slice through Magkono trunks to speed up the process but copious amounts of water are often needed to aid lubrication and prevent excessive heat generation during the cutting.

In the past, this hardwood species was highly valued for its extreme durability and density. Old steamships used Magkono wood bushings for their propeller shafts. It was made into tool handles, rollers, shears, poles and piles for wharfs and bridges, and,not surprisngly, for bowling balls before the advent of modern plastics and resins.

Bogeyman

As midnight of last December 1 drew to a close together with the deadline for the filing of certificates of candidacy for next year's local and national elections, the person almost everybody who is anybody in Surigao del Sur politics was either anxiously dreading or eagerly anticipating would file his COC (depending on which side of the political divide one was) was most assuredly nowhere to be seen. As in the last two previous local polls, Dr. Primo Murillo was again a disappointing no-show.

Yet until the very last minute, there were those at the provincial offices of the Commission on Elections in Tandag who waited in trepidation for the man to suddenly and magically appear and then formally join the list of hopefuls eager to mix it up in the May 2010 race for provincial positions. This, of course, brings up the big question in my mind.

For someone who has been out of the political limelight for the past nine years or so, why is Primo Murillo still such a big issue especially for the current political powers in the province? Why are rumors of the possibility that he may again be re-entering politics capable of sending shivers of apprehension and causing sleepless nights among those who supposedly have already sewn up total control of the provincial government after almost a decade of being in power?

Primo Murillo's nine years as provincial governor of Surigao del Sur from the early 1990's to 2001 were both remarkable and yet undistinguished depending on how one looks at his political career. Capitalizing on the the popularity of his father, Gregorio Sr., another doctor who was assassinated in 1983 while also a serving provincial governor, he quickly built a personal following that saw him win the governorship and hold on to it for three consecutive terms with landslide victories every time.

Nothing New

With all the media hype and attention currently focused on the so called Maguindanao massacre, it is easy to forget that despite the fact that at least fifty-seven persons lost their lives in that one, single and tragic incident, the merciless slaughter was ordered and carried out not by madmen and deranged individuals who did it merely for the love of killing or for some unexplained or insane blood lust. It was, based on what has been uncovered so far, a political assassination that lead to the mass killing of innocent individuals (all possible and potential witnesses to the original crime) and clearly a rational, planned and calculated act done for the sole purpose of stopping and crushing with one stroke the Mangudadatu's challenge to the political dominance of the Ampatuan clan in that province.

In the dog-eat-dog world of warlord politics in most provinces in Mindanao, dominant political clans enforce their rule over their political fiefdoms by intimidation and force. They will try, of course, to threaten and intimidate would-be opponents but actual and real challenges to their supremacy are inevitably met with violence since that is the most expedient and effective response in a local culture that worships the power of the gun and where private armies maintain and project a political clan's control and dominance over a province or geographical area.

Thus the Manguindanao massacre is singularly significant only in the sense that more than fifty people lost their lives in it. In all other respects, where it not for the number of individuals killed, it would have been merely another bloody footnote in the turbulent political history of this southern part of the country.

No Let Up

The killing of eight Army troopers and five others including one policeman last November 11 in the vicinity of Lanuza and San Miguel towns in Surigao del Sur has finally given the military and government the excuse to jack up the intensity of its counterinsurgency operations all over the province.

The thirteen causalities were lost in the aftermath of a carefully laid ambush executed by New People's Army guerrillas that saw a landmine explosion hitting a two vehicle convoy sent to reinforce a detachment of armed militiamen assigned to the Surigao Development Corporation (SUDECOR) near Barangay Pakwan also in Lanuza town which had earlier also been attacked by NPA insurgents.

The high cost exacted on the local military forces by the success of the "lure and ambush" tactics employed by the NPA, as evidenced by the recent ambuscade, has shaken the military leadership. As a consequence, reliable sources have revealed that the commanding officers of the 401st Brigade and the 58th Infantry Batallion of the Philippine Army which have operational jurisdiction over the province have been quietly relieved and replaced although nothing formal can be heard yet from the media or from the military high command.

Time and time again in the past, especially in the 1970's and 80's, the armed forces has lost many of their men to the classic NPA guerrilla stratagem whereby rebel forces harass an isolated military outpost and then launch the main attack on hapless troops trying to reinforce their beleaguered companions.

Rained In

In Lianga, local folks are trying to find ways to deal with one of the wettest weeks they had this year. Since last Monday, the weather suddenly turned cold and rainy which seemed for a day or two a welcome change after a short stretch of several hot, sweltering and sunny days. But when one wakes up to overcast skies and wet downpours that never seem to end and this happens day after day for a week or so, even the vaunted charms of long, dreamy, rainy days can wear off very quickly.

As in most small, towns in this part of the world, rainy weather has a damper effect on the tempo of community life. Work schedules are suddenly relaxed and an infectious lethargy descends upon all forms and aspects of human activity. Most people tend to stay at home and travel plans are shelved.

Those with houses along rivers, creeks and flood prone areas start to worry about rising water levels while others vainly try to plug holes in leaking roofs and walls while at the same time blaming themselves for procrastinating on not making essential house repairs and maintenance work during more sunnier and drier times. All worry about long brownouts which tend to be frequent during rainy and windy weather when power lines are most vulnerable to falling trees, flying debris and landslides.

Colds, coughing, asthma and other respiratory illnesses wreck their usual havoc on susceptible local residents who have to endure days of being cooped up together indoors behind closed doors and sealed windows. I, for one, should know. I have been battling a runny nose, clogged sinuses and the occasional fever the past few days.

Portents

It started out as a dull rumble in the distance much like the sound of large trucks zipping by on the nearby highway. Then it resolved itself into the whop-whop-whopping, rhythmic thumping made iconic in countless war movies on television and the movie screen.

The Vietnam War vintage Bell UH-1 Huey helicopter's distinctive rotor sounds may, in another setting, merely be a reason for idle bystanders to rush out of their homes in order to check what the heck in going on. In Lianga, however, the echoing thunder of this vintage aircraft is as familiar as it is foreboding. It is often a warning that war is afoot.

So five days ago, when I caught the sounds and made the sighting of at least two Hueys flying north at a low altitude over the north of the town, I immediately feared for the worst. The news, when it arrived, came in trickles.

A group of New People's Army guerrillas had raided a detachment of armed militiamen and security personnel in Barangay Pakwan near Lanuza town more than a hundred kilometers north of Lianga. The detachment is affiliated with the Surigao Development Corporation (SUDECOR) which is engaged in large-scale logging operations in the northern part of the province of Suurigao del Sur. In the aftermath of the attack, the rebels burned heavy machinery belonging to the firm and even took as temporary hostages some company employees and security personnel.