• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebel believed to be among those behind the recent destruction of heavy equipment in La Libertad, Negros Oriental died in an encounter with government troops Monday night.
The fatality was identified as Rolito Tanillo, with aliases “Roy” and “Gamatoy”, a suspected member of the Sangay Yunit Pampropaganda Squad under the dismantled Central Negros 1 of the Komiteng Rehiyonal Negros/Cebu/Siquijor.
The clash took place while soldiers of the Philippine Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion were conducting pursuit operations on the NPA remnants responsible for the burning of two backhoes, a payloader and a dump truck of a construction company in Sitio Manghuya, Barangay Aya on Feb. 8.
They caught up with four of the suspects, leading to a three-minute gunbattle, at Crossing Lansang in Barangay Talaon in the same municipality.
The troops recovered an M14 rifle at the encounter site.
No one was hurt among the Army soldiers during the brief encounter.
In a statement issued on Jan. 10, the NPA Leonardo Panaligan Command claimed responsibility for the burning of the heavy equipment, alleging that the project will allow big mining corporations and other commercial reforestation into the area.
Estimated damage on the torched heavy equipment was placed at P5 million.
Negros Oriental First District Rep. Jocelyn Limkaichong earlier strongly condemned the torching of the heavy equipment as a brazen act of violence.
Col. J-Jay Javines, civil-military operations chief of the 3rd Infantry Division, said the incident may delay the farm-to-market road project of the municipal government, which is supposed to link the hinterlands to the town proper. | GB
