ONE of the Negros 6 arrested in Mabinay, Negros Oriental was confirmed to be from Sitio Lapyahan, Barangay Labogon, Mandaue City.
Carlo Villamor Ybañez, 20, was born in Barangay Labogon and is the youngest of four siblings.
His father Raul Ybañez, 52, a construction worker, has long been separated from his wife Merlita, 45, since Carlo was still a child but both parents are living in the same sitio in Barangay Labogon.
Carlo’s neighbor, Gareth Pepito, still remembers that in 2016, there was a group that convinced Carlo and some youth to join a rally where they would be paid P250 to carry a placard.
“Nakadungog man gani mi nga dad-on sila sa Manila ug mao na to nga wala na namo makit-i si Carlo,” said Pepito. (We even heard they would be brought to Manila and since then, we have no longer seen Carlo).
Carlo’s father Raul, said, he only knew that Carlo was working in Manila but that they no longer communicated since he left home in 2016.
“Nag iniyahay naman lang gud mi og paningkamot kay lisud kaayo ang pangwarta, unya naa man sila magpuyo sa ilang inahan,” said the father. (We each went our way to earn a living because money was very hard to come by. And they lived with their mother).
He said they were not able to pay for education after they finished elementary school.
“Dili gyud ko katuo nga iya gyud nang gusto nga mahimong NPA, basin napugos ra na siya,” said Raul. (I can’t really believe that he was looking to become an NPA, he may have been forced to).
He added that Carlo’s mother Merlita had told him that Carlo was arrested in an encounter with military in Mabinay, Negros Oriental
Merlita went to Dumaguete City last Sunday after being informed about Carlo’s arrest by a person who is purportedly Carlo’s friend.
The neighborhood heard about Carlo’s arrest last Monday and were surprised to know that Carlo was a suspected NPA member.