ORMOC CITY- Two henchmen of self-confessed drug lord, Kerwin Espinosa, were separately arrested by police authorities in this city Saturday (January 7).
Arrested were Jesus Tolin and Brian Anthony Saldivar who earlier surrendered before former Albuera police chief, Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido.
The two were arrested by virtue of warrant issued by Judge Carlos Arguelles, presiding judge of Regional Trial Court-Branch 14 based in Baybay City, for murder.
The two were accused for the killing of one Gregorio A. Velarde, Sr. sometimes last year.
Supt. Federico Sanchez, deputy director for operations of the Leyte provincial police, said that the first to be arrested was Tolin along a national highway in Barangay Macabug at about 7:10 am while he was on board single motorcycle.
The arresting team confiscated one caliber 45 with a magazine loaded with nine live bullets from the suspect tucked in his waist.
Saldivar, meantime, was arrested an hour later in his house located at Brgy. Luna, 12 kilometers from city center and no prohibited item was seized from him.
The two were named in the warrant of arrest issued by Judge Arguelles along with Espinosa, who is now detained at the National Bureau of Investigation.
The court did not recommend for bail to the suspects who are now detained at the local police station lock up.
(ELVIE ROMAN ROA)
Two of Kerwin’s henchmen arrested by Ormoc police
Military supports localized peace talks with communist group
CATARMAN, Northern Samar – A top military official of this province expressed his support for local peace talks.
Colonel Mario Lacurom, commanding officer of the 803rd Infantry Brigade whose headquarters is based this town, said that he is just waiting among local officials in the province to initiate the localized peace process.
“We want to have a local peace talk here because it is the only serious and viable option to end the war in Northern Samar and the entire region,” Lacurom said.
“We always demand to end the sufferings of the people in Samar,” he added.
The 803rd IB covers the entire Northern Samar and part of Samar provinces, among the areas in the region where presence of the rebel group, the New People’s Army, remain to be relatively strong.
Lacurom stressed that soldiers are also looking for a peaceful solution to end the insurgency problem of the region which remain largely economically underdeveloped with its insurgency problem often cited as among the reasons why investors are shy in coming in here.
The Army official said that based on his initial talks with officials of the two Samar provinces, they appear to be supportive to achieve a lasting peace.
“In our dialogues with local officials in Samar and Northern Samar provinces, they all seem committed to work for the economic and political development of the two provinces. We just hope that the rebels will also support the peace initiatives for it to succeed,” Lacurom said.
Several towns in both Samar and Northern Samar provinces have earlier been declared as “peace and development ready” which means that the rebels are no longer in the position to stage an armed raid that could disrupt the peace and order of the areas placed under such category.
(JAZMIN BONIFACIO)
Hilongos police chief sacked from his post
Investigation on explosion incident still ongoing
TACLOBAN CITY- The chief of police of Hilongos in Leyte was sacked from his post as investigation on the blast incident in the said town continues.
Chief Inspector Alberto Renomeron Jr., was relieved from his post effective January 5, nine days after the explosion incident rocked Hilongos that injured 32 people, 10 of them were children.
The relief of Renomeron was signed by Leyte police director S/Supt. Franco Simborio though with the go signal of Chief Supt. Elmer Beltejar, regional police director.
“Chief Inspector Renomeron was relieved from his post as chief of police of Hilongos and was replaced by (Chief) Inspector (Ronald) Espina,” Chief Inspector Bella Rentuaya, information officer of the Philippine National Police (PNP-8), said.
Renomeron, the head of Hilongos police station since March 4, 2016, was temporarily reassigned at the Leyte PNP headquarters “on a floating status.”
He was replaced by Espina who was previously assigned at the Leyte Public Safety Battalion.
Rentuaya said that the relief of Renomeron is just part of the standard operating procedure as there is an ongoing probe regarding the incident.
“But he is still part of a special task force created regarding the incident in Hilongos,” she said.
But a source said that Renomeron was sacked from his post due to his failure to monitor the existence of the threat that resulted to the bombing incident.
On December 29, Beltejar created the special investigation task force to help hasten the Hilongos incident.
The December 28 incident at the Rizal Park in Hilongos injured 32 people after an improvised explosive devices (IED) exploded.
The first IED, of an 81 mm mortar, exploded at 9:01 followed with another explosion minutes later.
Police operative are still conducting their manhunt operation against their suspects using the footage taken from the CCTV.
Illegal drugs and a group involved in counterfeit money are the two angles being considered by the police as motive for the incident.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
Babatngon Port seen as a regional transshipment hub
With RDC’s endorsement
TACLOBAN CITY – The Regional Development Council (RDC) has approved a proposal that feasibility study be made to make a seaport in Babatngon, Leyte as the future transshipment hub for the region.
Aside from feasibility study, experts from the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will also come up with a master plan of the Babatngon Port as Eastern Visayas’ regional transshipment hub.
The study is expected to kick off early this year and it will be completed within 2017.
The proposed development is not actually just a simple port, according to Oliver Cam, RDC private sector representative for business.
The RDC approved the proposal during its full council meeting on Dec. 20, 2016.
Babatngon town is located in the northern part of Leyte and is just 22 kilometers north of this city.
The town’s port has been eyed by experts as regional hub considering the difficulty of big ships to reach the regional capital.
Large Tacloban-bound vessels have to traverse the narrow San Juanico Strait that separates Samar and Leyte Islands to reach the regional center.
Part of the proposal is to build a cargo terminal holding and warehousing facility.
“The classic example of what we see now in both Tacloban and Ormoc ports in Leyte is that the cargo vans are outside the port utilizing part of the road or part of another area, which are not designed to have that much capacity in terms of the cargo van holding, loading, and transporting capability equipment,” Cam said.
The overall feasibility study will take account of where and how large the holding, loading and warehousing facilities needed for cargo vans and other related cargos.
“The proposed port development will also be a part of the Tacloban North Agro-industrial economic zone. Thus, it will facilitate better exchange of incoming inputs and outgoing outputs of the economic zone,” Cam explained.
The Tacloban North Agro-Industrial Economic Zone is a 13.4 hectare economic zone identified by the Tacloban city government and is located in the northern part of the city.
Comprehensive feasibility study is also being pushed for the ports of Naval, Catbalogan City, Calbayog City, Leyte Integrated Development Estate in Isabel town, and Ormoc City.
“The goal here is not to marginalize the other existing ports but to optimize the traffic among our ports in the region so that all of us will benefit from this comprehensive feasibility study,” Cam explained.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO)
Gov. Petilla launches pilot poultry project for ‘Yolanda’ survivors
ALANGALANG, Leyte- A poultry layer egg production pilot project was recently launched in this town aim to teach the farmers in the localities about poultry production.
Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla said that the
main purpose of the project is to help increase the income of the beneficiaries on top of the organic vegetable production that they are doing.
Petilla said that the pilot poultry project, located in Barangay Tombo, will serve as the training ground for the farmers who are the survivors of supertyphoon “Yolanda” to venture into poultry production as an additional source of income for the coconut farmers.
The beneficiary organization, Barangay Tombo Farmers Association, manages and operates the project under the supervision and control of the Provincial Agriculture Office.
The governor said that the first batch of the egg layers, composed of 1,400 layers, could produce 40 trays of 30 eggs per tray.
After 18 months the layers will be culled and will be sold as meat because they are not anymore laying eggs, he added.
The governor said that he is encouraging the coconut farmers, after their coconut plantations were devastated by the calamity, aside from going into intercropping to venture into livestock or poultry raising while they are still rehabilitating their coconut farms.
The governor said that it takes 4 to 7 years for the coconut to bear fruit depending upon the variety planted.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)
Police faces blank wall on the killing of a drug pusher linked to the Espinosa drug group
ORMOC CITY- Police authorities are still facing a blank wall on the killing of one of the high profile drug pushers of this city as they are calling possible witnesses to help them uncover the armed suspects.
Chief Inspector Omar Cartalla, officer-in-charge of Police Station 1, this city, said that they could not yet determine who killed Ferdinand Rondina, tagged as level 2 of their high profile targets linked to the illegal drug trade in Ormoc.
Rondina was said to be one of a drug dealers of self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa in Ormoc City.
He was shot dead on the night of January 6 while watching a television outside his house in Barangay District 4.
Eyewitnesses said the suspects wore bonnet and hooded jacket.
Jenjen Pacañot, sister of the victim, said that two men who acted as lookout stood at a passage exit while another two appeared at corridor from inside the village, approached and shot Rondina.
The victim was brought to a hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
Members of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (Soco) recovered 10 fired cartridges and three deformed slugs of suspected caliber .45 gun.
Rondina surrendered before the police on July and voluntarily submitted to former Albuera police chief, Chief Insp. Jovie Espenido, after being linked to the Espinosa drug group. (ELVIE ROMAN ROA)