Police are investigating the deaths of two high school students in what is suspected to be suicide cases in Daanbantayan town, northern Cebu.
Police said depression over their failure to secure school clearances may have driven the two victims, who were cousins, to kill themselves.
Dina and Jerry (not their real names) were both 15 years old.
Police said last Monday, Dina sent a message through Facebook to one of her classmates where she bade goodbye and asked forgiveness from some of her friends.
The message read: Bye Hazel, last ko nalang ni nga chat ahm. Dle na pod ka mo problema nga dili ko ma cleared dle nko mo xkol pls tell ni marifer rosemarie nga sory nga wala ko mutingog nila coz kabalo knaman ngano. Plz ko tell ni lang ug Nikki nga ila folder dre ipakuha lang…bye..bye. thank sa lahat ha pakisbi din kay Marifer Rosemarie, thank you sa lahat.”
The message was read by her classmate two hours after it was sent.
Dina’s friends informed their class adviser, Carlos Pepito, about the message.
Pepito then asked his students to check on Dina.
PO3 Raymon Pepito, investigator of the Daanbantayan Police Station, said the classmates went to Dina’s home but it was closed.
The three students detached some jalousie blades from a window and found Dina hanging from the ceiling in her room with a belt looped around her neck.
Dina was brought to the Daanbantayan District Hospital where she was declared dead.
The victim’s mother told police that her daughter was scolded by her father prior to the incident.
Early morning yesterday, Jerry was also found dead hanging from a tamarind tree about 100 meters from his house.
A rope was found tied around the boy’s neck.
Police said the boy sent a text message to a friend where he said that he would kill himself, citing the same reason as his cousin.
“Puslan man nga wa ko na-cleared sa skwelahan,” the message read.
The two cousins went to the same school but belonged to different sections.
“We cannot determine yet why they were not given clearances. Basin naa silay project nga wa na comply or unsa ba, under investigation pa na karon,” said Pepito.