Guv says no bounty money for stolen artwork, ordered cops to recover item

By Dolly Yasa

Bacolod City- Negros Occidental governor Eugenio Jose Lacson dismissed the possibility of offering a reward money for the recovery of a stolen artwork from a museum in Silay City.

“You know, you could just imagine the price of that piece of art. I don’t think the province can even offer an amount that is commensurate to its value,” the governor told reporters Monday.

Lacson said he is banking now on the expertise of the police on how to trace the suspects.

He added that the police already have a lead as far as the case is concerned.

“They have a lead, my instruction is to do everything possible to recover that piece of art,” Lacson further said.

Lacson further said that he asked the police provincial director to update him with the latest developments on the case.

“Definitely we would like to recover that very valuable piece of art,” the governor said.

Earlier, Silay City Mayor Joedith Gallego said the Silay City government is offering a P25,000 cash reward for information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects and recovery of the valuable painting.

It was Silay City tourism officer Gerle Sulmaca who reported that Amorsolo’s “Mango Harvesters” painting was taken from the Hofileña museum in Barangay 1 on Wednesday morning, July 3.

The “Mango Harvesters” painting (1936), measuring about 12×18 inches, is part of the collection of the late Ramon Hofileña, a renowned art curator in the province, dubbed the “Father of Heritage Conservation in Silay City.”