[The Lord]

Crime, crime and more crime.


Hi Harry, I have enjoyed reading your straight forward no baloney articals recently. I have lived in AC off and on for 7 or 8 years and permanently for the past 3 years. I have a lovely wife and daughter and pretty much stay out of the bar scene, for no other reason other then I am just plain happy at home. I do have a few friends around the bar scene that in the past few months have met with tragedy such is the latest, Hans, of Butterfly Rock. I don’t know if things are getting worse around here or just a bad run of luck in recent months.


I’m a straight forward foreign guy who has worked and traveled the world for 30 years with basic common sense about other cultures and local laws. I keep my nose clean and stay out of trouble or possible troublesome situations.

However in the past few months have also met with my own minor bad luck around town. In Sept I was run off the road on my motorcycle on MacArthur near Johnny’s to find 4 local upstanding teenage citizens jump out or their van to assault me. I had my motorcycle helmet on, so that saved me a bit and of course I fought back in the middle of the street until the police arrived. One might think this is a cut and dry obvious crime situation that 4 men in a van ran over and attacked one man on a motor bike. Well the local authorities didn’t think so, and to make a long story short I decided after a long evening in jail cell (together with 3 of my attackers, the 4th mysteriously walked away ) to wrap up my torn clothing, pay a few bucks and get home. As well, to pay these gentlemen the cost of their damaged van that my motorcycle caused. I cant complain much about this, as it was my decision to just end the situation and be done with it. Something that some might say is what these kind of folks count on. At least with us foreigners. But honestly I cant say if I would have faired any better in AC Courtroom..
Secondly, my Filipina wife was Car napped or motorbike napped just last month in broad daylight just off Pandan road near theTuscanyresort. Actually just in front of the christian international school where as the security guard just happen to be in the CR. Two men with the T-shirt style face cover and a 45 automatic jumped out of a hide spot near the speed bump and pushed her and her 8 year old son off the bike and shoved the gun in her face and rode off. 3:00 pm with the schools guard 5 meters away and a trike terminal 20 meters away. No one lifted a finger to help in any way. I do consider us lucky as similar situations with guns have turned out far worse. Needless to say that bike is gone forever especially since the LTO has no system in which to report or track stolen motorbikes. As my wife attempted to at least input the stolen motorbike registration into the LTO computer system so if and when the thieves tried to re-register it then it would be marked as STOLEN. But NO, this is not possible. Thus making it absurdly easy for a thief to re- register a stolen bike and make it their’s in a matter of minutes. No questions asked, As well, the police write a report but seem to do little else but persistently asked my wife out on a date. Their opening line is: Police man “Hello Mom Did you find your motorbike ? (arent we supposed to be asking them that question) Anyhow, the system is set up in favor of the thieves. The only measures to stop this are the occasional check point in which you might catch 1 out of 1000 thieves. The LTO needs a system to mark stolen vehicles in the computer.
Well last but not least my subdivision in Pandan is run by a supposed elected president that no one has seen or talked to in many years. Even the borangy capt cant contact him. The problem is this subdivision has been the continued victims of crime after crime in the last year with no security and no one to speak with in the homeowners association. Robbery’s, burglaries, car napping, motorbike napping , drug dealing, and the usual. In fact last week two guys on a trike took a young girl from fields ave and brought her all the way over here just to rob her. A sign that the local thugs know just were to go for a little privacy with no security. I have tried for more then a year now to get some one, any one to help or at least identify our homeowner’s association and help with this situation but to no avail. my question to you after all of this, is do you have any idea who in the local government is in charge of the barangy’s over all or who has any say in the homeowners associations ? Thanks for your time and I do appreciate any of your advice. Tony AC Pandan (Tony, the first part of your letter indicates one hell of a run of bad luck. Too bad that you got a taste of the “no matter what syndrome” here in the PI. That is, if you are involved in an traffic accident, no matter who is really at fault the police usually decide that it is the foreigner. In your case I am surprised since you were physically attacked by four men and beaten. Then, to have your wife attacked as well? Man, that is just too much. The homeowner’s beef seems trivial compared to all the other stuff but I did forward your comments to John Casey, a foreigner who has had some recent experience with the Villa Sol Homeowner’s Association. You might find his comments helpful: Interesting situation with the President missing. The organization to approach is HLURB on their web site. Republic Act #9904 is the Magna Carta for Homeowners and Homeowners Associations, and for other Purposes. I personally feel that locally a letter to the City Council would be in order and the proper person is in the City Council online directory. I don’t mind assisting in the matter if he should want to stop by my place any afternoon and we could go over the paperwork and the routes that I took and I could show him where to deliver a letter for the City Council and or attend their meetings.)