“Nineteen passengers were injured Thursday in an explosion inside a unit of the Yellow Bus Company while at a secluded stretch of a national highway in the outskirts of Polomolok town in South Cotabato. Investigators said the improvised explosive device (IED), placed in the baggage compartment at the rear section of the bus, was set from a distance using a mobile phone. Local officials are convinced extortionists were behind the bombing, meant to intimidate and force the owner of the bus company to shell out ‘protection money’ on a regular basis.”
Source: 19 hurt in South Cotabato bus bombing | Nation, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com