The FREEMAN Foundation helps Toledo hostage victims

CEBU, Philippines - Last December 22, the lives of three children changed drastically when a man disturbed by his marital problems, held them captive inside his house.

But one little boy’s happy childhood turned gloomiest when he lost his arm a few days before Christmas, after being held hostage by Allan Bolo along with two other kids in Barangay Biga, Toledo City.

Instead of a happy three-year-old boy running around and playing to his heart’s content, he has become moody and fearful of other people.

According to Araceli Plando, the little boy’s mother, her son may look fine but deep inside she can feel that the kid is trying to cope with his present situation.

The little boy who lost his arm wakes up crying sometimes.

“Inig katulog niya madat-ugan niya iyang bukton, makamata unya maghilak,” she told The FREEMAN.

The other three-year-old kid and his five-year-old brother had also shown the damage that the hostage-taking incident made on their innocent lives.

She added that two other victims have also become fearful and keeps staring at people whom they just saw.

Among those who pledged help so far, only Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia sent assistance.

This was also confirmed by Plando in an interview with The FREEMAN.

The Provincial Government and 3rd district Representative Pablo John Garcia shouldered the hospital bills of the child at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center.

The governor purchased the medicines and vitamins of the child. She also gave Christmas goodies, rice and financial assistance.

Plando said Garcia also told them to go to their office in case she still needs financial assistance for the boy’s medication.

Aside from the Provincial Government’s help, The Philippine Star Group of Publications through The FREEMAN Foundation also gave assistance to the victims such as groceries, cash, toys, wound medications and clothes.

These were personally handed to Plando by Melandro Mendoza, general manager of The FREEMAN.

With the victims’ present condition, The FREEMAN Foundation is also planning to look for a psychologist to provide a free debriefing session to the three children, assisted by Dra. Remedios Bacasmas, physician of the University of the Visayas.

Plando admitted that her only problem now is on how to sustain the needs of her son after she quit her work as a house helper in Minglanilla due to what happened.

She is planning to leave her son to her father. Plando is also planning to ask her employer if she can work again since farming is their only source of income.

“Among gikaon ron ang gihatag lang ni Gov. pero inig hurot wa pa mi kahibalo asa mi mokuha ug para konsumo,” Plando said.

To recall, Bolo held hostage the three children. The little boy lost his arm when Bolo hacked him with a bolo while two of the kids were tied around Bolo’s waist.

When Bolo hacked the right arm of the three-year-old boy, this left a policeman from the Toledo City Police Station with no other choice but to shoot the suspect in the head upon the directive of Sr. Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, Cebu Provincial Police Office director.

Bolo, who was already hurt, still was not spared from his neighbor’s punches.

The two kids were safely rescued while the other was rushed to the hospital due to his hack wound.

In order to save the boy’s life, the doctor at VSMMC in Cebu City amputated his right arm after one of the major veins in his armpit was cut off.

Plando said that though it is hard for her son to cope with his present situation, still she thanked God for her son’s second life and for giving them good people to help them through this ordeal. (FREEMAN)