Dec . 12 - 17 , 2016

By Miriam Desacada

Tacloban City - A valuable witness involved in the issuance of a search warrant authorizing the CIDG to conduct a search operation inside the Baybay sub-provincial jail has disappeared , prompting suspicions of another rubout .

On the other hand , one of those charged by the National Bureau of Invetigation with murder claimed that he was not part of the team that killed Mayor Rolando Espinosa , explaining that when he arrived at the scene , Espinosa was already dead .

In its investigation report , the NBI said the CIDG , led by Supt . Marvin Marcos , had obtained a search warrant from RTC-Basey , Samar Judge Judge Tarcelo Sabarre Jr . to make the search legal . Sabarre said he was convinced of the testimony of Paul Oledan , a former inmate who the CIDG-8 presented to Sabarre as witness that Raul Yap and Rolando Espinosa were keeping shabu and guns inside the jail , justifying the search warrant .

But according to the NBI , the warrant was maliciously obtained as the witness Oledan had lied when he said he visited Yap inside the jail on October 28 and that he saw Yap and Espinosa had guns and were repacking shabu . Later verification with the Leyte National High School where Oledan was said to be working showed that Oledan was there on that day .

Olendan is also facing a

The Baybay City sub-provincial raid after the killing of Yap and Espinosa

separate perjury complaint for lying before the court in order for the CIDG team to obtain the warrants . But he is reported to be missing , raising speculations that he had disappeared either because of fear for his life or under other mysterious circumstances .

In a separate interview , Senior Police Officer Alphinor Serrano Jr , has denied his participation in the rubout of Espinosa and Yap , saying he arrived at the Leyte Sub- Provincial Jail in Baybay City at around 9:30 a . m . on November 5 , when Espinosa and Yap were already gunned down .

Serrano is among those charged by the NBI of the murder of Yap and Espinosa .

“ As investigator of the CIDG , I just went to the crime scene just to find out what really occurred in the operations . I was not even allowed to get inside the jail perimeter . My name was only placed in the accomplishment report , but I was not part of the raiding team ,” Serrano declared .

In his counter affidavit filed at the Internal Affairs Service of the police , Serrano cited a statement of Eul Caorte , reporter of Kaugop Radio who was invited to cover the CIDG raid . Caorte attested that Serrano arrived at the jail at past 9 a . m . and that the latter was not part of the team . #

an attention ?” Ilagan asked . He added that it will be more beneficial if the government will use the money instead to construct disaster-resilient evacuation centers .

Relocatees ’ transfer delay tide embankment construction

DPWH ’ s Tabacon cited the slow construction of relocation sites where the affected communities will be transferred to as the reason for the delay of tide embankment construction . During the third year commemoration of Typhoon Yolanda in Tacloban City , President Duterte remarked that the current pace of reconstruction was too slow and unacceptable .

Secretary Mike Dino , the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas , in compliance to the President ’ s order has started the mass transfer and is targeting 8,000 families to be relocated by end of the year 2016 .

Members of CYSP , however , say that families of survivors are in worse conditions than before : housing units are barely ready for

The protesters were also asking the government to investigate other housing projects being implemented in other parts of the region amid reports of substandardquality housing units .

In Balangiga , Samar , residents up for relocation to a housing project of the National Housing Authority complained that the units are not fit for dwelling . Some of the houses , while made of concrete and steel , reported shake when the wall is pushed due to weak foundation earning them the monicker “ dancing houses .”

CYSP calls on the Duterte administration for a people-centered Yolanda Rehabilitation . They call on DPWH to stop the tide embankment project and conduct a science-based feasibility study for their disaster mitigation efforts . It also calls on the NHA to stop the anomalies related to their housing projects and ensure an integrated housing project based on people ’ s plan .#

By Jun Tarroza

ORMOC CITY - “ Lar ,” 57 , married , with 4 children , was one of four women in Brgy . Can-adieng , this city , who voluntarily surrendered as drug user during the Oplan Tokhang . She had been using shabu for three years . It was “ Pepe ,” her husband , who caught her ‘ jamming ’ with shabu with her friend .

She said before the Tokhang came , she had already quit the vice , attending spiritual counselling so that her husband could see the changes in her .

She said she and her friends bought a small cachet P300-P500 by chipping smaller amounts because shabu was expensive . They got it in this village and Mabini at the city proper .

“ Galgalon gyud ko sa akong amiga labina kung mahubog , ( Her friends urged her especially when she got drunk )” she said . The drug did not have a serious effect on her mentally and physically .

“ Tinuod ‘ nang ilang giingon nga dili ka mahubog sa inom kung makashabu . Apan lang kapoy sa lawas pagka-ugma ( It ’ s true that you don ’ t get drunk when you take shabu . But it ’ s tiresome the next day ).”

Lar was one of the 67 drug surrenderees in the village . Of this figure , only 27 regularly attended the spiritual counselling of Sheepherds ’ Church Fellowship Center Pastor Paul Villamor three times a week for six months .

According to the pastor , one of the causes of low attendance is work , while others see counselling as useless . He said there are others who came to the counselling but still continue peddling drugs . This is the case of Rodylito Judilla in NSV in this village who is now detained

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at Bureau of Jail Management and Penology , Alta Vista , this city .

But many among them have changed spiritually compared with the “ backsliders .” Villamor , who is also the Ormoc City director of the PARDSS ( Peace Action and Rescue with Dedication to Serve the Society ), a group against criminality , said the attendance situation in Can-adieng is similar to the other villages they handle .

He said in Ormoc ’ s 110 barangays , 38 of these under them , there are 14 pastors from various religious congregation under Ormoc Evangelical Ministerial Association assigned in various areas . He said they give a certificate of completion to a surrenderee after six months of spiritual transformation through the Bible .

They also do the community-based voluntary services to help the local government and the police force to reduce or eliminate the drug menace . He said they do not get support from the government , for instance for motorcycle gasoline allowance , for their services .

Also they do not attempt to convert the surrenderees to their religion as they are given freedom to choose .

So far , only 1,050 drug users and pushers undergone through the ‘ drugs categorizations ’ of the local government . They are categorized as “ high , moderate , and low risks .” The high risks are those drug addicts who undergo rehabilitation in a facility such as in Dulag , Leyte .

The moderate ones undergo daily spiritual counselling . While the socalled ‘ low ’ are those they handle currently . Mayor Richard Gomez said there are 2,730 drug surrenderees in the city , twice the number of those categorized .#