Police official hails peace covenant signing

CALBAYOG CITY, Philippines  — Following the creation of the Police Regional Special Operations Task Force to address the killings in Samar, Superintendent Ernesto Tagle, director of the Calbayog City Police, said political violence in the province must end now.

Tagle said the RSOTF was a “vital avenue for every Samarnon in achieving peace in the province.” He also hailed the signing of the Peace Covenant, of which politicians and residents committed themselves against violence and denounced the existence of private armed groups.

The RSOTF and the covenant signing were aimed at ending the killings, which police said had already claimed the lives of almost 200 political supporters since 2013, he said.

Tagle told The FREEMAN that leaders in government, the police, the military and the Church should unite to have a peaceful community. "This is the only way we can end the political violence in Samar, and our elected officials should not allow any private armed group to operate in their respective areas of responsibility.”

The police had already done its part with the creation of the RSOTF, which will arrest PAGs leaders, some of whom were already identified and others were already hauled to court to face criminal charges, said Tagle.

Senior Supt. Brigido Unay, chief of Police Regional Office-8’s Intelligence and Investigation Division, was alarmed over the 59 deaths since January this year in Calbayog alone, followed by the September 15 massacre of alleged PAG leader, Sonny Regulacion and four of his family, including the wounding of two of their neighbors.

However a couple of weeks of investigation since the Regulacion massacre, the police had already filed multiple murder and two frustrated murder charges against the Managaysay Private Armed Group, allegedly headed by a certain Arnold Villesa.

The RSOTF, headed by Sr. Supt. Isaias Tunog, is now waiting for the issuance of the warrants of arrest against nine members of the Managaysay group.

Newly appointed Local Government Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento, formerly congressman of Samar, for his part said extra-judicial killings in the province is finally being addressed. He also appealed to the law enforcement agencies to join forces leading to the arrest of people behind these killings.  (FREEMAN)