ESPINO
CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON
ARMED MEN in a boat report
Police are patrolling areas in Bohol and Cebu which can be possible docking places of the reported armed men on board a pump boat from Guihulngan, Negros Oriental.
This developed after unconfirmed reports of armed men on board the pump boat surfaced after Friday’s ambush in Guihulngan, Negros Oriental, by members of the New People’s Army on police officers, killing six of the lawmen.
Chief Supt. Mario Espino, Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7) director, said that they are doing preventive patrols in these areas.
“We have identified places naman and our public safety forces are there patrolling in the area,” said Espino.
Espino also lauded the Bohol provincial government’s action to alert their network about the possible presence of the insurgents in their province.
“I think it (report) was received by the governor, and his part in order to help, he disseminated it to all his barangay chairmen,” Espino said.
“Diyan po natin makikita yung ating local chief executives at community ay tumutulong that they will not allow armed men come in their area (From there we can see that our local chief executives and the community are helping us, and that they will not allow armed men to come in their area), he said.
He, however, said that they were not concerned about any spillover from the Guihulngan ambush, but they were also being careful to take risks and not be lax about it.
He said he received an intelligence report that the group who ambushed the Guihulngan police officers had already left Negros Oriental.
He also assured that although the intelligence report had not yet been confirmed, they are preparing for any contingencies.
Meanwhile, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said he was impressed with PRO-7 Director Espino and cited the new PRO-7 chief’s attitude on how to keep the peace and order of the region.
“He’s very sensitive about the focus of each individual, of what a policeman should do in an hourly basis. If this is basketball, it is man to man and I really like that. I haven’t heard it from any other officer,” said Osmeña in an interview on Monday.
Espino made a courtesy call on Osmeña on July 22.
“He said, when there is a breakdown in an area, (you) don’t just relieve the precinct commander, you relieve the policemen who are responsible. I like that attitude because that’s very unusual,” said Osmeña, who assured Espino of the city’s support in doing his job especially in the war against illegal drugs.