P15-million reward up for arrest information on Joma, Ka Roger

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has put up a P15-million reward for the arrest of Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) chairman Jose Maria Sison and New People’s Army (NPA) spokesman Gregorio “Ka Roger” Rosal.

At the same time, the DILG approved an P18-million reward for any information that could lead to the arrest of 20 suspects in media killings.

It was not clear why a bounty is being put up for Sison, who is seeking political asylum in the Netherlands. The Dutch have refused to send him back.

With the reward, the Philippine National Police (PNP) announced that it would release to the public tomorrow the pictures of persons wanted for their alleged involvement in the killing of journalists.

PNP spokesman Chief Superintendent Nicanor Bartolome said Sison carries a P10-million reward, while Rosal has a P5-million bounty on his head. Both are wanted for the killing of journalist Nelson Nadura of radio dwME in Masbate in December 2003.

Bartolome said the PNP welcomes the reward for these wanted persons.

“We are confident the reward offer will encourage the public to report to authorities and hasten the arrest of these wanted persons,” Bartolome said.

The PNP spokesman said another P3.235 million is expected to be released soon for the reward system for 19 other wanted persons involved in the killing of militant personalities.

Bartolome said the P18 million and P3.235 million are separate from the P25-million fund President Arroyo had announced to pay informants in a bid to end the wave of political killings in the country.

The reward system is among the measures initiated by the PNP in response to the order of the President to immediately solve cases involving working journalists and militant personalities.

Mrs. Arroyo said the fund would go to those who “provide information that foils political assassination attempts or leads to their solution, especially the identification of their masterminds.”

The President urged lawmakers to contribute P250,000 each from their pork barrel funds to boost the reward fund.