• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Seven suspected New People’s Army rebels, including four ranking officials, died in an encounter with Army soldiers on Sunday in Barangay Tapi, Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental.
Brig. Gen. Joey Escanillas, 302nd Infantry Brigade commander, identified the slain rebel leaders as Mary Jane Maquilat, alias Chin Chin, secretary of the dismantled South West Front and her husband, Reniel Cellon, alias Ka Kumpol, commanding officer of South West Front(SWF) Charity Amacan, the secretary of the dismantled South East Front (SEF), and her deputy Glendyl Mijares.
The three other slain rebels were identified by the Kabankalan City Police Station as Isidro Supilina, alias Dalia, a political instructor of SWF, and John Rey Mijares Jr., political instructor of SEF, and alias Pitong.
The encounter was an offshoot of joint operations of the 47th Infantry and 15th Infantry Battalions against the combined remnants of the dismantled Komiteng Rehiyonal Negros/Cebu/Bohol/Siquijor SWF and SEF, estimated at 10 members who are reportedly consolidating their forces in the area, according to Escanillas.
He said the four series of armed encounters started at 5:30 a.m. and ended at almost 7 a.m.
Army soldiers recovered several high powered firearms, including six M16 rifles, an M16 assault rifle equipped with M203 grenade launcher, assorted ammunition, and back packs containing personal belongings at the encounter sites.
The cadavers of the seven suspected rebels were brought to a funeral parlor in Kabankalan City to be claimed by their respective families.
Escanillas raised the possibility that the merging of remnants of dismantled guerilla fronts may also have something to do with May 12 elections, in connection with the imposition of permits to campaign, and permit to win schemes on candidates.
The series of encounters also led to the evacuation of some residents of the barangay, whose basic needs are being attended to by Kabankalan City through Mayor Benjie Miranda, he added.*
