ORMOC CITY– A job order (JO) employee of the local government unit (LGU) in Calubian, Leyte expressed deep remorse as he broke down in tears after being arrested at a police checkpoint.
He was fleeing the scene where he fatally shot an elderly farmer on Monday night, January 20, at Sitio Liga, Barangay Laray, about 30 kilometers from the town proper.
Calubian Chief of Police, Cpt.Alexander Alfonzo, identified the victim as alias “Rosalio” III, 65, a married farmer and the suspect, alias “Leonie,” a JO employee of the LGU-Calubian. Both were residents of Sitio Liga, Barangay Laray.
According to the police report, the station was alerted by village chairwoman Roberlly Balangatan of Laray, who reported the shooting incident via phone.
Responding to the call, officers arrived at the scene and found the victim lying lifeless with a gunshot wound to his back. Local barangay officials had cordoned off the area while the suspect had already fled on an unidentified motorcycle.
The Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) was immediately called to process the crime scene.
By 11:04 pm the same evening, the suspect was apprehended during a hot pursuit operation. Police confiscated the alleged weapon used in the crime, described as a .357 revolver without markings, loaded with four live rounds and one fired cartridge.
The suspect admitted his intent was to scare the victim by pointing the borrowed revolver at him when it accidentally discharged, hitting the victim in the back. He said he was overcome with panic and regret upon seeing the victim convulse and take his final breath, prompting him to flee the scene.
The suspect was informed of the nature of his arrest and his constitutional rights in a language he understood. He was subsequently taken to Calubian Municipal Police Station, along with the recovered firearm and other pieces of evidence, for documentation and proper disposition.
The police filed charges of homicide against the suspect, along with a separate case for violating the Commission on Elections (Comelec) gun ban.
(ROBERT DEJON)
Stubborn
A voice in the wilderness is what one senator Ana Theresia “Risa” Navaro-Hontiveros viuda de Baraquel appears as the tyranny of numbers effectively drowned her pleas to deny the application for naturalization of a chinese junket operator by the name of li duan wang. Said chinese junket operator reportedly earns huge commissions for every high roller he brings to the country. Despite his being a chinese, he is engaged in retail business which by law is only for Filipinos. How in hell was this li duan wang able to secure a certificate of live birth showing he is Filipino. He too is a holder of many tax identification cards as if he is paying taxes, and having many of such cards is a violation of our laws and punishable.
It bears mentioning that for foreign nationals applying for Filipino citizenship, one must have resided in the country for at least ten years, must own real properties, must be proficient in english, spanish or any Filipino dialect and demonstrate good character. The applicant had been found to have violated Philippine laws, chiefly, his having obtained a certificate of live birth and having several tax identification cards. It is well to emphasize that the applicant must of good character and not a violator of Philippine laws. These facts are borne by official records according to senator Riza Hontiveros.
Admittedly, there is no conviction of the above-mentioned violations as required by law but the facts of such violations are clearly established and are valid red flags that the majority senators ought not just ignore. The records in previous senate hearings bear the fact that li duan wang has links with Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO). But senators Sherwin Gatchalian JV Ejercito insist that there is no direct evidence linking li duan wang to POGO, despite the fact that he reportedly bought a property where a similar POGO complex owned by Whirlwind Corporation in Porac, Pampanga is erected.
Notably, li duan wang is a casino junket operator and partner of wu duanren, a Chinese fugitive who allegedly financed the construction of the POGO hub in Bamban, Tarlac where the fugitive alice leal guo who was found to be a chinese national bearig the chinese name guo hua ping. Unfortunately, nineteen senators approved the bill for the naturalization of li duan wang as a Filipino citizen.
A petition urging the magical president to veto the bill is gaining ground in a last effort to deny the naturalization of li duan wang. Indeed, it would be the height of hypocrisy if the magical president would approve the naturalization of li duan wang after declaring in his last state of the nation address the order to ban POGOs in the country. Filipinos could not be blamed if they raise the nagging question as to the high is the price to be stubborn.
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