A dilemma named Leila de Lima

By Herbert Vego

IT is hard to believe the news as reported – that Senator Leila de Lima was taken hostage and rescued in an attempted prison break by detained militants last Sunday.

Had the hostage taker and his two companions survived, would they have told a different story?

Could she herself have been killed by the hostage taker had the latter not been “neutralized” by the responding police guards?

The dead hostage taker, Feliciano Sulayao Jr, is turning out to be a person of interest. He and two others, Anduljihad “Idang” Susukan and Arnel Cabintoy, had allegedly tried to escape their cell at the Philippine National Police (PNP) Custodial Centre in Camp Crame but were intercepted by the police guards.

Susukan was a sub-commander of the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group; Cabintoy and Sulayao were suspected members of Daulah Islamiyah, the extremist group involved in the months-long takeover of Marawi City.

Doubting Thomases argue that somebody powerful must have sent the three suspects on a mission to kill the detained former senator.  But when the plan went awry with the fatal shooting of the two suspects, the third man had no choice but grab De Lima, demanding for a safe get-away by helicopter.

A little research revealed that in August 2020, Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) leader Nur Misuari traveled to Davao City in a private jet, bringing with him captured terrorist Idang Susukan.

So, why in the world were Susukan, Sulayao and Cabintoy made to share the same PNP-owned custodial facility housing De Lima?  Why were they transferred from a Davao jail to a police detention facility in Quezon City, unless on a mission?

The New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa is the right place for hardened criminals like them.

De Lima, staunch critic of former President Rodrigo Duterte, has been languishing in jail for more than five years, awaiting trial for illegal drug charges. No judge would handle her case for lack of evidence.

Incidentally, I remember the day (November 5, 2016) when personnel from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) raided the Baybay City Provincial Jail cell of Abuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr on the pretext that he was hiding a firearm. The mayor, a drug suspect, turned up dead after an alleged shootout.

Is no jail safe enough for the “enemy”?

‘CALLE REAL’ UNDERGROUNDING A MATTER OF TIME

ILOILO City Mayor Jerry P. Treñas looks forward to seeing no more “spaghetti” wires dangling from pole to pole of J.M. Basa St. to support the cable networks of MORE Power and the communication utilities.

He told us that the forthcoming undergrounding of cables is a step in the direction of transforming the place into a tourism avenue. It would be a joint undertaking of the city and members of the Public Utility Group of Iloilo (PUGI), namely MORE Power, Converge, Globe, Smart, PLDT, Skycable, Panay Broadband, and DITO Telecommunity.

J.M. Basa, which used to be known as Calle Real, was the business hub of Iloilo City until the turn of the 21st Century.  It is a portion of what is now known as the Iloilo City Central Business, which is covered by RA 10555.

RA 10555, a brainchild of the then Congressman Treñas which was signed into law by President Benigno Aquino III in May 2013, is an “Act Declaring the Iloilo City Central Business District, the Jaro Cathedral, Molo Church, Fort San Pedro, Jaro Plaza Complex, Molo Plaza Complex and Plaza Libertad Complex as Cultural Heritage Tourism Zone”.

The old Calle Real is still home to multiple Commonwealth and Spanish-era buildings, still renting out office spaces and stores offering cheaper prices. The majestic buildings thereat have been restored with funds from the Iloilo Cultural Heritage Foundation (ICHF).

Engr. Bailey Del Castillo, deputy head for network operations of MORE Power, estimated that of the total project cost, at least P54 million would be spent for the underground trench of telecommunication companies, and P96 million for the electrical facilities of MORE Power.

The 1.6 kilometer undergrounding work emanate from the corner of Burgos Street at Plaza Libertad and cover the entire stretch of JM Basa.

The project has been on the drawing board since July this year.  It is expected to take off within 2023, assuming it gets the approval of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Meanwhile, estroryahi n’yo bi ang cost-sharing.

JOURNEY OF AN OFW SURVIVOR

OUR friend Eduardo Gulmatico of Bacolod City has released his second book, Journey of an OFW Survivor. It is a sequel to his first book, Tears and Joys.

His books are aimed at bringing hope to the near-hopeless who see no future.  He believes there is future for everyone who strives to thrive.

“Nag-abroad ‘yan,” he had heard simple people say of surviving overseas Filipino workers, motivating him to follow them.

The book further chronicles his lifelong journey from the sugarcane fields of Negros Occidental as a sacada to the construction sites in the Middle East.

As organizer of a labor union in a sugar mill, he fought for higher wages in 1982 but this provoked his employer into filing civil and criminal cases against him.

After his wife gave birth to their fourth child, Ed knew he could no longer make both ends meet out of his daily wage. He tried and tried applying for work abroad until eventually he got a “dirty” job emptying septic tanks of human waste and reconstructing comfort rooms for a hospital in Habibiyah, Iraq.

Ed persevered until the opportunity to see the late Saddam Hussein presented itself. The beginning of better times was when he made it as one of the workers who built the strongman’s underground bunkers.

If you are interested in buying his books, the author may be contacted at CP 09173607624.