ORMOC CITY- Police authorities are still facing a blank wall on the killing of one of the high profile drug pushers of this city as they are calling possible witnesses to help them uncover the armed suspects.
Chief Inspector Omar Cartalla, officer-in-charge of Police Station 1, this city, said that they could not yet determine who killed Ferdinand Rondina, tagged as level 2 of their high profile targets linked to the illegal drug trade in Ormoc.
Rondina was said to be one of a drug dealers of self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa in Ormoc City.
He was shot dead on the night of January 6 while watching a television outside his house in Barangay District 4.
Eyewitnesses said the suspects wore bonnet and hooded jacket.
Jenjen Pacañot, sister of the victim, said that two men who acted as lookout stood at a passage exit while another two appeared at corridor from inside the village, approached and shot Rondina.
The victim was brought to a hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
Members of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (Soco) recovered 10 fired cartridges and three deformed slugs of suspected caliber .45 gun.
Rondina surrendered before the police on July and voluntarily submitted to former Albuera police chief, Chief Insp. Jovie Espenido, after being linked to the Espinosa drug group. (ELVIE ROMAN ROA)

CAMP KANGLEON, PALO, Leyte- Region 8 has obtained 18% drug-cleared barangays since Barangay Drug Clearing Operations have been implemented in October 2016, says Police Chief Supt. Elmer Beltejar, regional director of Police Regional Office 8.
He said that the entire region has 370 barangays in different towns and cities that are already drug-cleared in collaboration with the local government officials since the new administration launched its intensified narco-war.
PC/Supt. Beltejar said that the number was the latest recorded so far as of January 3, 2017.
The region has a total of 2, 474 affected barangays from 4, 390 total number of barangays with a variance of 2,104 total number of barangays to be cleared from drugs.
All these said barangays underwent rigorous evaluation down to the grassroots in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Councils and PRO8 aims to declare more municipalities/barangays as drug-free this year with the continuous implementation of Project Double Barrel-Alpha, Beltejar adds.
Moreover, the declaration of the drug-free barangays is based on the following factors: non-availability of drug supply; absence of drug transit/transshipment activity; absence of clandestine drug laboratory; absence of clandestine drug warehouse; absence of clandestine chemical warehouse; absence of marijuana cultivation site; absence of drug den, dive or resort; absence of drug pusher; absence of drug user/dependent; absence of protector/coddler and financier; active involvement of barangays officials in anti-drug activities; active involvement of Sangguniang Kabataan to help maintain the drug-liberated status of the barangay; existence of drug awareness, preventive education and information, and other related programs; and existence of voluntary and compulsory drug treatment and rehabilitation processing desk.
Beltejar considers the police operations against illegal drugs a “success” with the drug supply in the region cut by as much as 90% since the implementation of Project Double Barrel-Alpha and has challenged more cities and municipalities to protect their communities from being infiltrated by illegal drugs.
Likewise, PRO8 urges the public to support the police in waging the war against illegal drugs by providing relevant and timely information in their respective places to report to your nearest police station or through social media (Twitter – @Pro8Pcrd or Facebook Page – PNP RegionEight) or through the following: Dial 117 or text 2920; RPCRD 09173238683/ 09088146421; RTOC 09173114794 /09478907155 and Isumbong Mo Kay Tsip 09178475757. (PR)

TACLOBAN CITY – Nearly 700 households in the northern barangays will soon have access to potable water, this after the city government through Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez secured funding from the Department of Interior Local Government (DILG) which will be used to install much-needed water facilities there.
Worth P5 million, the fund will come from the DILG Bottom Up Budgeting (BuB) Potable Water System Sub-Project and will be used by the city government for the installation of the water pipeline distribution systems in both at the Habitat and Kapuso Villages.
City Administrator Atty. Irene Chiu said the project will provide much needed water services in the north which is currently dependent on daily water rations by the City General Services.
Recently, the city government said that it is putting up a satellite office in the north, a good 13.4 kilometers from the city center, to provide much needed government services to the resettled communities.
Families whose houses were totally destroyed by supertyphoon “Yolanda” were resettled at the northern part of the city.
Concerned households which attended the public consultation organized by the city government on Wednesday, January 4, welcomed the project.
This latest development is part of the thrust of Mayor Romualdez to provide basic amenities to resettled families in the north, according to Chiu.
She added that the BuB project will provide households with free pipe and water service installation and is expected to commence as soon as the fund is downloaded to the local government unit.
Each of the beneficiary households will be installed with a level 3 type water system which means that each house will have their own water connection and meter.
Private Water Utility Provider Mactan Rock, will supply water sourced from different potable sources in the city.
The City Engineer’s Office will undertake the pipe installation while the Mactan Rock will take care of the water systems maintenance.
The BuB-Water Supply Project is part of the DILG-BuB program which aims to strengthen local communities’ participation in national budget formulation and project implementation. (HENRY JAMES G. ROCA/CITY INFORMATION OFFICE)

TACLOBAN CITY- Elements from the Tacloban City Police Office(TCPO)-SAIDSOTG Police Station 2 led by Chief Inspector Rudy Conejo Jr. with seven non-commissioned officers conducted a buy-bust operation at Purok Santol, Barangay 66, Paseo De Legaspi, this city at about 4 pm of January 8, 2017 that resulted to the arrest of Welmina Albero,23, single, and a resident of same barangay and Grace Tampil,24, single and a resident of Purok 2, Brgy 65, Paseo De Legaspi, this city.
A certain “Tolindoy” Herrera and “Yogyog” Herrera were able to elude arrest.
The poseur- buyer bought from the suspect one piece heat-sealed transparent sachet containing suspected shabu.
Recovered from Albero’s actual possessions were six pieces heat sealed transparent sachet containing suspected shabu, two pieces P100 bills, improvised lighters, two pieces improvised tooters, among others.
While confiscated from Tampil was one piece small heat-sealed transparent plastic sachet containing suspected shabu.
Confiscated pieces of drug evidence were turned-over to the Regional Crime Laboratory Office (RCLO8) for qualitative and quantitative analysis while the other pieces of non-drug evidence were turned over to TCPO evidence custodian.
Suspects are now under the custody of Police Station 2 custodial facility while cases for violation of Sections 5, 6, 7, 11, 12 & 15 of RA 9165 are being prepared for filing before the City Prosecutor’s Office.
The operation was conducted in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA-8) under the supervision of S/Supt. Rolando V. Bade, acting city director of TCPO. (PR)