• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Another suspected member of the New People’s Army died in another encounter with Army soldiers and police troopers on May 22 in Sitio Manaysay, Barangay Cambayobo, Calatrava, Negros Occidental.
Lt. Col. J Jay Javines, 3rd Infantry Division spokesperson, disclosed on Thursday that the encounter broke out after the 79th Infantry Battalion soldiers and troopers of the 1st Negros Occidental Provincial Mobile Force Company, who were conducting Joint Enhanced Military and Police Operations (JEMPO), responded to reports of residents on the presence of about seven remnants of the dismantled Northern Negros Front (NNF) under the Komiteng Rehiyon – Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor.
Javines said the firefight, which lasted almost 10 minutes, resulted in the death of Jeje Redobles, a remnant of the dismantled NNF guerrilla front.
Also recovered from the encounter site were an M16 assault rifle, a hand grenade, medicine, assorted foodstuff and war materials, as well as personal belongings.
The death of Redobles came a day after a remnant of the dismantled Central Negros 1 guerilla front identified as Richard de la Peña, alias Rocky, died in an encounter with 62nd Infantry Battalion soldiers in Brgy. Quintin Remo, Moises Padilla, Negros Occidental.
De la Peña, according to 1Lt. Mary Liza Joy de Guzman, was involved in the murder of Albert Navaro Goles alias Tongkay, on April 24 in Sitio Coyaoyao, Brgy. Inolingan, Moises Padilla.
The NPA Leonardo Panaligan Command, also known as CN1 guerilla front, through its spokesman, Ka JB Regalado, earlier claimed responsibility for the killing of Goles, whom they accused as a military informant of the 62IB.
Army soldiers also recovered an M16 assault rifle with two bandoleers containing three magazines of ammunition, a caliber .357 revolver and a backpack containing subversive documents, from that encounter site.*
