Everybody glued to TV sets Sunday

Life almost stood still Sunday to view the TV coverage of the fight between Oscar De la Hoya and Manny Pacquiao. Almost everybody were glued to their television sets in the cities. Others tuned in on the radio broadcast of the historic match.

Funny, but even the retreats of the Neo Catechumenal community in the La Scala Retreat House rushed out post lunch to inquire about the outcome of the bout, although most had already predicted a Pacquiao win.

Thats what happened in Negros Occidental as in other places all over the country. Even criminals seemed to have opted to monitor the outcome of the match that pitted Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao against De la Hoya, an American-Mexican.

Even the troopers of the military took time out to listen in on the radio broadcast of the bout. And, as pointed out by Senior Inspector Rico Santotome of the Negros Provincial Police Office, his office registered not even a single crime incident from the 31 city and municipal police stations as well as those of the four mobile police groups.

Just like in the metropolis. Even criminals opted to watch the match instead of venturing out to do their own thing.

Lt. Gen. Victor Ibrado, Philippine Army commander, said – “The Philippine Army is extremely proud of Ms/Sgt. Pacquiao. He embodies not only the fighting spirit of the Army, but more importantly, the discipline and love of country of each and every soldier must have in his heart for his motherland.”

What was funny were the sight of tricycle and trisikad drivers milling at coffee shops and restaurants to watch the delayed telecast of the boxing fight. Most preferred to listen to the blow-by-blow accounts over radio about the bout earlier.

Negros Occidental Gov. Isidro Zayco congratulated the Filipino boxer as the “best fighter we ever had. “I’m proud of him, said the Negros governor.

Vice Gov. Emilio Yulo III, who watched the bout with his friends, said De la Hoya was outclassed, outsmarted and outplayed by Pacquiao.

Bacolod Congressman Monico Puentevella, who was in Las Vegas, for the bout, noted that Pacquiao had proven to the boxing world wrong – “it is not height but speed that counts, Puentevella expressed amazement with the way Pacquiao ran rings around the veteran De la Hoya.

Well, even I was greeted by my children and in-laws as well as relatives with “Pacquiao won by a TKO” when I reached home after a three-day retreat Sunday.

And they all prodded me to watch the delayed telecast even when I had told them that long before, I was already confident that Pacquiao was going to win the match.

Well, at least for one day, Sunday, the Philippines stood as one to watch the Pacquiao-De la Hoya fight. If the same could be done in addressing our national problems.

Defective ammo

The Philippine National Police ordered yesterday an investigation into the alleged issuance of defective ammunition to the 6th Regional Mobile Group. These ammunition were reportedly used by the RMG troopers during the latest ambush last week by New People’s Army rebels in Victorias City.

Even Superintendent Ramus Zacharias Canieso admitted that he was among the recipients of dud ammo. He used some during the more than one-hour gunbattle with the ambushers.

Senior Superintendent Manuel Felix, Negros Occidental police chief, said there is now an ongoing probe to determine why and how those ammunition allegedly became defective.

Inspector Robert Dejucos, chief of the NPOPO investigation branch, said the effective ammunition and 24 empty shells of M-16 and M-14 rifles from the firearms of the ambushed RMG troopers were recovered from the scene by Scene of the Crime Operations (SOCO).

They are now being examined for ballistics tests by the PNP Crime Laboratory.

The ambush last week killed a female RMG trooper and resulted in injuries to four other policewomen security escorts of Caineso in Hacienda Mimi, Barangay Estado, Victorias City.

The lone fatality was PO1 Jane Tacdao, a native of Guimaras Province.

The four wounded troopers were PO1 Marife Cantomayor, Anne Lou Patricio and Jocelyn Tibar as well as PO1 Melanie Tupas.

Canieso estimated that some 50 defective ammunition had been issued to his troops who unknowingly used them during the firefight with the rebels.

“These ammunition should already be junked as they pose grave danger to the lives of troopers who may be issued such bullets,” Canieso pointed out.

This is an investigation that must be allowed to slacken by the authorities. The more important is to pinpoint who had issued them to the RMG and to determine whether those who had handled the ammo were aware that they were defective.

There’s nothing worse than getting killed by the bullets of the enemy than getting killed by one’s own bullets which either do not fire or misfire.

Watch out for more developments later.

They did not mind Pacquiao match

They were the only group in Negros Occidental who did not give a hoot about the outcome of the bout between Oscar de la Hoya and Manny Pacquiao.

These were the Lakbayan marchers who stared Friday at Escalante City in the North and those who started their march from San Enrique town in the South yesterday morning.

And the Karapatan-Bayan-Negros marchers refused to be deterred by the drenching rains the poured in the province since Friday.

Along the way, people handed them bottled water, biscuits and even coffee, according to Felipe Gelle Jr., Bayan secretary general.