As sign of protest,PH flag in half-mast in public school in n. Cotabato

KIDAPAWAN CITY -- The Philippine flag in a public school in a remote village in Makilala town in North Cotabato was placed in half-mast since Monday after unidentified armed men torched one of its classrooms, a barangay official said.Chairman Melvin Fortajada of Barangay Malasila in Makilala said the flag would be placed in half-mast until Wednesday as sign of the protest of the teaching personnel and the parents to what the armed group did to their school.On Sunday, around 345 p.m., the suspects razed the classroom of Grade One of the Balawan Elementary School at Sitio Balawan, Barangay Balawan.Cotabato provincial fire marshal Ibrahim Guiamalon, in a radio interview on Tuesday, estimated the damage at P700 thousand.The school is dominated by pupils belonging to the Manobo tribe.The classroom has to undergo major repairs before it could be used again.Fortajada said that when he visited the area on Monday he saw none among the personnel and pupils inside the school.Reports reaching Fortajada said the pupils and some of the teachers have expressed fears because of what happened.Omar Obas, Cotabato schools division superintendent, has clarified that he did not order suspension of classes at Balawan Elementary School after the incident. When you see none inside the school, it was just that the teachers there were attending training somewhere in Kidapawan City. I did not order suspension of classes despite what happened, Obas, in a text message, said.Fortajada said he has already sought police assistance to secure the school from being attacked again by the armed group.The armed groups in Barangay Malasila include Moro rebels and communist guerillas, reports said.