Tribal feud in Surigao del Sur town resolved

BUTUAN CITY – The military said it helped resolve the decadeslong feud between two Manobo tribes in San Miguel town, Surigao del Sur,

In a statement to Manila Bulletin, 1st Lt. Jonald D. Romorosa, Civil Military Operations (CMO) officer of the Army’s 36th Infantry Battalion, said on Thursday, the warring clans settled their differences through the efforts of the Army and local government unit (LGU).

Romorosa said the 36th IB, led by its commander Lt. Col. Jezreel Diagmel, and local officials of San Miguel brought the leaders of the Maca and Acebedo clans together in a dialogue held in Barangay Umalag last week.

The delegation from the Maca clan was headed by Datu Rico Maca, and the Acebedo delegaton by Datu Subang.

San Miguel Mayor Hazel Elizalde presided the dialogue together with 36th IB commander Lt. Col. Diagmel, together with Datu Montenegro, the tribal chieftain of San Miguel, Datu Martinez, tribal chieftain of Carromata, and officials of the San Miguel police station.

“As your local chief, I am hoping that this conflict will be settled and your resentment towards one another will end as you release forgiveness and let go of the grudges. This will be a great help in our pursuit of attaining peace and order in San Miguel, particularly to the peace loving IP community,” Romorosa said, quoting from the statement of Elizalde.

“Let us join hands with one another to bring solution to our misunderstanding. We should resolve our problems to achieve peace that we are longing for as one community and for the next generations,” said Diagmel in a separate message during the dialogue.