NPAs kill 6 cops in Negros
BACOLOD CITY — Six policemen, including a city police chief, and a civilian were gunned down while five others were wounded yesterday in attacks staged by communist guerrillas in Barangay Magsaysay, Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental.
Senior Inspector Armilyn Vargas, spokesperson for the Negros Island Region police office, identified the slain policemen as Guihulngan police chief Supt. Arnel Arpon, Senior Police Officer 2 Nicasio Tabilon, SPO2 Chavic Agosto, SPO1 Jesael Ancheta, PO2 Alvin Paul Bulandres and PO2 Alfredo Dunque.
Civilian Michael Jambalus was killed in an earlier rebel ambush.
Injured were SPO4 Jerome Delara, PO2 Jorie Maribao and PO3 Jordan Balderas and two still unidentified civilians.
Col. Eliezer Losañes, the Army’s 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, said the rebels ambushed the policemen who were responding to an earlier assassination attempt on Guihulngan Councilor Edison dela Rita and his
companion Jambalus.
Losañes said Dela Rita was injured after the earlier attack by another New People’s Army (NPA) group in Sitio Gi-ob, in Barangay Magsaysay, Guihulngan City about 140 kilometers north of Dumaguete City, capital of Negros Oriental.
The wounded Dela Rita, was able to escape and reported the incident to the city police.
Inspector Vargas said the Guihulngan police chief and 14 other local policemen were responding to the ambush of Dela Rita when they were attacked by the rebels.
Losañes said NPA rebels have allegedly marked for assassination Dela Rita and police officers from Guihulngan, and Himamaylan and Kabankalan in Negros Occidental.
Initial reports received by the military disclosed that suspected NPA rebels ambushed Dela Rita and his companion who were on board two motorcycles en route to Guihulngan City proper from Barangay Balogo.
Losañes said the NPA attacked Dela Rita apparently to later draw responding policemen to the ambush site.
Maj. Gen. Jon Aying, 3rd Infantry Division commander, said the ambush in Guihulngan was conducted by the NPA’s Central Negros Front of the Komiteng Rehiyonal-Negros.
The two separate ambush incidents took place as the Communist Party of the Philippines ordered tactical offensives against government forces, following plans of President Duterte to extend martial law in Mindanao for another five months.
PSG men awarded
President Duterte on Thursday night awarded the Wounded Personnel Medals (WPM) to the five members of the Presidential Security Group that were wounded when they clashed with communist rebels in Arakan, North Cotabato.
The President visited the wounded soldiers identified Staff Sargeants Gerry Torsar, Arniel Matunhay and Rolito Lisondra, Corporals Ayam Alia and Rodel Ledesma at the Armed Forces Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) station hospital in Camp Panacan, Davao City.
Duterte pinned the WPM medals on the five troopers when a PSG van was ambushed by NPA guerrillas in military uniform and manning a checkpoint at the highway in Barangay Gambudes, Arakan last Wednesday. –