Through the years, the Philippine armed forces have provided Moro and communist rebels a steady supply of guns and ammunition.

by Ed Lingao

RICKY COMES up north to Manila for only two reasons: to visit relatives, or to buy guns and ammunition. In these crime-ridden times, that's not really unusual — except for two things. Ricky (not his real name) is a member of the New People's Army (NPA), and he says he gets his guns and bullets from a contact in Camp Aguinaldo. Oh, and he buys government bullets at P5 each, even though the government spends P14 to make each one.

	This member of a politician’s private army in Jolo, Sulu may be wearing slippers, but he has more ammunition than regular soldiers. [photo by Romeo Gacad]

This was last year. When I met up with his former commander, Rey (also not his real name), in early August, I was told the prices have gone way up. Peak season prices, Rey said, because of the coming elections.

The sale of guns and bullets by government troops and some of their officers to rebel groups and warlords is an old cottage industry, say contacts from the NPA and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Long before Lt.SG. Antonio Trillanes IV and his not-so-merry men even learned which end of the gun to point at their enemies, government arsenals have been fair game for rebel groups.

Trillanes was the spokesperson of the rebel soldiers who staged the July 27 mutiny. Even from his holding cell in Camp Aguinaldo, he maintains that he has evidence to show that top government and military officials, including defense secretary Angelo Reyes, have been selling firearms and ammunition to rebel groups.

Military officials have been quick to throw out Trillanes's allegations. "Preposterous," huffs AFP vice chief of staff Gen. Rodolfo Garcia. "Hindi natin tinatatwa na mayroong pilferage na nangyayari, pero not in the scale na pinalalabas ng grupo nila (We don't deny that there's pilferage going on, but not in the scale that they're saying)."

"It's not possible," asserts Garcia. "It's just not right."

The general says there may be one or two supply sergeants who sell a firearm or two. But he says it is inconceivable for any soldier or officer to sell arms and ammunition in bulk.

Former AFP Logistics Command chief Manuel Mariano disagrees. Mariano, who tried to clean up the LogCom when he was in charge in the mid-1990s, had initiated court-martial proceedings against a mid-level officer, a major, who sold more than 400,000 bullets to an unknown group. That, he says, may just be the tip of the iceberg.

Rey himself says, "Tutoo lahat 'yang bilihan ng baril. Ang supply namin dati, galing pang Camp Crame (That thing about selling of guns to rebels is true. Our supplies in the past had come from Camp Crame)."

Rey was an NPA regional commander until the late 1990s. While still connected with the Left, he has since gone aboveground.

Prices of guns and ammunition fluctuate, depending on the season, he says. Peak seasons are the times leading up to elections and coups d'etat, when demand for firearms and ammunition is high.

On a nonpeak season, an M16A1 can go for P25,000; peak season, it goes up to P35,000. The baby armalite goes higher, P35,000 nonpeak, and P50,000 peak season.

The M16 with a 40mm grenade launcher attached underneath is particularly popular — and expensive. It's priced at P50,000 nonpeak season, and P65,000 peak season, Rey says. The 40mm grenade goes for P500 nonpeak, and P1,000 peak.

But Rey says that they don't buy as much guns as they would like, because of the amounts involved. Only one out of every 10 guns held by the NPA was purchased. The rest were captured or given.

Most of the communist rebels' purchases involve bullets, because these are "consumables." At least half of the bullets of an NPA rebel were bought from government sources, Rey says.

During nonpeak seasons, the M16 bullet can be purchased at P3 per round, or more than 75 percent below what the government pays for each bullet made by its own arsenal. But Rey says that when times are really tight, the bullet's price can go as high as P50 each.