The former Surigao mayor reportedly left his hometown in San Jose, Dinagat Island, days before operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) went there to arrest him in connection with the killing of his wife Alona.
Alona’s body was found dumped in a ravine last Jan. 5 in Dalaguete, Cebu.
A 40-man team, led by CIDG chief Edwin Diocos and composed of Cebu CIDG operatives and their counterparts in Surigao, went to Dinagat to serve Ecleo’s arrest warrant but they left the island without him.
Diocos said Ecleo’s mother, Surigao del Norte Rep. Glenda Ecleo, told them that her son left Dinagat Island on May 21 after the 37th annual conference of the PBMA.
Ecleo was said to have left the island to avoid any untoward conflict between the police and PBMA members.
Some of the placards read, "We love peace," "We hate violence" and "He is innocent."
Diocos said more supporters barricaded the streets to Ecleo’s ancestral home.
He said they were able to talk to Rep. Ecleo in the PBMA’s office, about two kilometers away from the Ecleos’ mansion.
Amid a sumptuous lunch of lechon and fish she prepared for the police, Rep. Ecleo told the CIDG team that her son was no longer in Surigao del Norte but was somewhere else on a "mission."
She said she would not "surrender" her son because she is innocent of the charge.
About 100,000 people or 80 percent of the population of Dinagat Island are members of the PBMA and loyal supporters of the Ecleos.
Diocos said the congresswoman advised them not to proceed to her son’s mansion because there were more PBMA members waiting for them there.
Pullout
"The way I assessed the area, delikado na (it’s dangerous). Hindi na lang kami tumuloy sa mansion (We didn’t proceed to the mansion), we opted to pull out. I would not sacrifice the lives of innocent people and the lives of my men," Diocos said.
Diocos said they were not discounting the possibility that Ecleo might not have left the place at all and was just hiding somewhere in the island.
He admitted though that it would be difficult for them to arrest Ecleo if nobody pinpoints his exact whereabouts. The island is composed of seven municipalities.
Diocos said he does not believe that Ecleo has left the country, saying that Ecleo would be safe in the Philippines because he has supporters here.
He said one way to arrest Ecleo is through a large-scale operation involving more men both from the CIDG and the Armed Forces, and equipment like helicopters.
He added that even if they were able to arrest Ecleo, they would have a hard time getting out of Dinagat Island safely, considering the number of Ecleo’s loyal supporters.
"They should have exhausted more effort. They committed negligence for not doing their job," he said.
Cuenco said their failure to even try to serve the arrest warrant was a clear manifestation of their incapability to move against people with power and influence.
"They should not have gone back home. Useless diay ang authority. Nobody is untouchable. They are guilty of malfeasance of a public duty. They could be charged for dereliction of duty," the solon said.
Regional Trial Court Judge Benigno Gaviola agreed with Cuenco, saying he was particularly horrified to learn that the police even ate lunch offered by Rep. Ecleo.
"They should have refused the invitation to lunch as it would seem they were not out to arrest the beleaguered PBMA leader. They were supposed to enforce the warrant with force...What happened was they allowed themselves to be entertained and it seemed that they became part of those who were trying to prevent the arrest," Gaviola said.
The judge said the CIDG team is answerable to higher officials and a reprimand should be given since having lunch with Rep. Ecleo constitutes an administrative liability. — Freeman News Service, Ben Serrano