Without firing a single shot

The bad news in the papers recently was not about kidnappings or bombings by rebel Islamic forces in areas in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao — which have seemingly become common reading fare — but the hostage-taking on April 2 by five Manobo gunmen of 15 teachers and children.

Reports said the five did not understand Philippine legal processes, so in a bid to get the government to free a relative, Ondo Perez, they resorted to kidnapping the teachers and schoolchildren on April 2. Ondo Perez is in jail and awaiting trial for murder and the kidnapping of 79 persons, including teachers and schoolchildren in La Prosperidad in 2009. The gunmen freed three of the 15 hostages they seized April 2, a Saturday, and in the next two days, Sunday and Monday, freed the 12 others after receiving assurances from the government that Perez would be tried fairly.

The kidnapping was yet another blow to the government’s efforts at keeping the peace and order in Mindanao and parts of Central Luzon, including Metro Manila. In the case of the Manobo crisis, President Aquino instructed Philippine National Police chief, Director General Raul Bacalzo, to take a direct hand in the Agusan del Sur crisis negotiations. Bacalzo did as he was told, and in three days, the hostages were released.

The peaceful resolution of the Agusan hostage taking obviously helped the PNP in mitigating unwarranted allegations of the police’s incompetence in handling crises.

Bacalzo and his men had learned the ropes after the Luneta tragedy. It will be recalled that Bacalzo, who heads the 115,000 strong PNP, ordered a thorough review of organizational procedures and ordered refresher courses for those involved in handling emergency situations, particularly the Special Action Force (SAF) and the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams of the various police officers throughout the country.

Bacalzo’s low-key intervention in Agusan resulted in the release of the 15 hostages without firing a single shot. The resolution is seen as redemption for the police whose reputation was badly damaged by the Luneta crisis.

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We Gingoognons who have taken up residence in Manila and travel back home now and then, have always been proud of the magnificent highways stretching from Surigao to Butuan, to Gingoog, and to Cagayan de Oro City. We liked to boast to our friends of the excellent state of the cemented highways over the years. But lately we have been disappointed at the state of disrepair of these highways. From Butuan to Gingoog, we noted cracks, and dismal softened parts of the road.

This horrible state of destruction of our road network is being caused by trucks that are overloaded with logs that are traversing the highways from Butuan to Gingoog, and as far as Cagayan de Oro. Besides destroying the highway, these trucks can be a source of fatal accidents.

This columnist is calling the attention of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), the PNP Highway Patrols and checkpoints to attend to this matter before accidents occur and the roads become total wrecks. The LTO should also check whether the bodies of these logging trucks are oversized so they can carry loads that are way beyond the specified weights they can carry along highways. Likewise, maybe the many PNP checkpoints along the way can also be given authority to apprehend trucks that are overloaded.

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A good friend, Lourdes Almeda Lopez-Sarabia, executive director of Gota de Leche (meaning “drop of milk”), a charity organization that addresses the problems of malnutrition among mothers and children, passed away April 9 at St. Luke’s Hospital after a lingering illness. She was 84.

Lulu left behind children Jose and Priscila, Anna Leah, Nelia, Wawie and Jorge Sarmiento, Olga, Nelia, Manuel Luis and Laarnie, and Antonio and Irene. She was a sister to Augusto and Aida Almeda-Lopez and Marita and Jose Campos.

Her remains are at Arlington Main on Araneta Ave., Quezon City. Cremation is scheduled for tomorrow, April 13.

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One of the good developments in Intramuros is the construction of White Knight Hotel Intramuros at the Plaza San Luis Complex, Cabildo cor. Urdaneta. The facility, built within the walls of Intramuros, has been attracting foreign guests (who learn about the place through the internet) and local weekend tourists, executives and passersby who enjoy delicious dishes prepared by a five-star hotel chef, and pop and Filipino music provided by professional singers and different bands, everyday, from nine in the morning to 10 at night. Better yet, the hotel is within walking distance of Manila Cathedral and San Agustin church and museum with its olden artifacts, Rizal Park, an 18-hole golf course, and Fort Santiago.

The hotel, which opened late last year, is considered to be the best in its category of budget hotels, and is managed by the highly respected White Knight Hotels Group.

The president and CEO of White Knight Hotel is Morgan P. Say, a civil engineering, magna cum laude, graduate of De la Salle University. Young, at 23, has travelled far and wide to prepare himself for the job of running the hotel, conceptualizing its goal (“to help in nation-building”), and looking at all aspects of running a modern, low-budget but classy hotel, from personnel choice to the menu to entertainment. Another challenge in the offing for this personable young man is the construction of another budget hotel at Macapagal avenue along Roxas boulevard next year.

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