SPO1 DUMPIT IN ERMITA POLICE/FEB. 8, 2017.(CDN PHOTO/JUNJIE MENDOZA)
THE family of SPO1 Adonis Dumpit finds it strange that not a single policeman has sent their condolences since he was gunned down on Wednesday.
“He (Dumpit) had a lot of police friends in Cebu and Bohol, but nobody even called up or sent a message to check what happened. That’s very strange knowing the volume of friends he had,” said Dumpit’s former wife, Josephine.
The family also noticed the absence of policemen when Dumpit’s body arrived at the Ouano Wharf in Mandaue City from the port of Tubigon, Bohol, past 9 a.m. on Thursday.
Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak, deputy mayor on police matters, escorted the slain policeman’s casket together with the personnel of a funeral parlor.
Dumpit’s body was transported to the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes in downtown Cebu City where the wake was held.
Dumpit wore a policeman’s uniform with his nameplate on it. His casket was draped with the Philippine flag.
But since the wake started past noon on Thursday, not a single colleague of Dumpit from the service paid their respects.
Cebu City Councilor Margot Osmeña was the first to visit followed by her husband, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who came in about three hours after his wife left.
Mourners started arriving past 4 p.m. but these were mostly employees of Cebu City Hall where Josephine works.
But Josephine didn’t mind the absence of Dumpit’s friends in the service, saying what mattered to her was he would be given a proper burial.
For Councilor Osmeña, she found it difficult to see Dumpit inside the coffin.
She begged off from issuing any statement regarding Dumpit’s alleged involvement in the illegal drugs trade.
“I prefer to remember him as the good man that he is,” she said.
Mayor Osmeña, for his part, said he would fulfill his former security aide’s wish to have a decent burial.
“All I want to do is to make his dream come true which is to give him back his dignity. I’ll just give him a nice burial,” said Osmeña.
Dumpit served as the close-in bodyguard of Mayor Osmeña for several years before he was arrested for killing a 17-year-old suspected robber in 2004.
Dumpit was later convicted of homicide in 2014 and was granted bail while he appealed his case.
Osmeña vowed to shoulder the funeral expenses of Dumpit and pay for the school fees of the policeman’s son, Norman Vincent, a psychology student in a university in Cebu City.
Osmeña also said he was also open to taking care of Dumpit’s 12-year-old adopted daughter.
“We’ll see what we can do. If she has nowhere to go, I will take care of her,” Osmeña said.
Philippine National Police chief Director General Oscar Albayalde earlier said families of slain policemen who are linked to the illegal drugs trade can still receive benefits from the PNP as long as they have no pending cases.
In the case of Dumpit, his homicide case remained pending at the Court of Appeals.
His lawyer Benjamin Militar said he last met Dumpit two weeks ago to discuss their appeal which was already submitted for resolution.
Militar said he was not privy to Dumpit’s activities since they only talked about the pending case.
“His personal life is not something I’m fully aware of. Whether the accusations are true or not, I believe he was a good police officer,” he said.