MANILA // Philippine policemen killed a retired officer and arrested four other suspected hitmen today in a crackdown aimed at preventing violence in next year's congressional and local elections, officials said.
Police intelligence agents and members of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission raided five hideouts of a syndicate in the northern provinces of Bulacan and Nueva Ecija and arrested four alleged members and killed one suspect, Charles Calima, the national police intelligence director, said.
The guns-for-hire syndicate is suspected of involvement in past political killings, Mr Calima said.
Officers seized pistols, a grenade, ammunition and a motorcycle, and four of the guns would be tested to check if they had been used in past attacks, Mr Calima said.
More than 18,000 congressional and local positions will be decided in the elections next May, and violence and fraud are an ugly hallmark of past Philippine elections.
The Philippines shifted to automated elections for the first time in the 2010 presidential elections to produce results more rapidly and prevent violence and fraud from arising during the slow hand-counting of votes that took months to complete in the past.
"It's now hard to cheat because of the automated elections," Mr Calima said. "The concern is some candidates may opt to eliminate rivals with these guns for hire."
A hired gunman could get as much as US$95,200 (Dh350,000) to stage a killing, according to police.
President Benigno Aquino III has ordered the national police to take steps to curb elections violence — a tough feat in an impoverished country awashed with tens of thousands of unlicensed firearms and burdened with warlord clans and powerful provincial politicians with private armies.
In the country's worst political violence, 57 people were herded from a convoy at gunpoint and gunned down en masse in southern Maguindanao province in 2009 in what officials say was an attempt by a ruling clan to prevent a rival family from challenging its political control in the region in an elections. Among those killed were 31 media workers.
Prominent members of the clan have been arrested and are being tried for the massacre.
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Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
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Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
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