BEHIND THE SCENES

Inside story of three NPA rebs’ surrender
(Mar T. Supnad writes this week’s column.)

CAMP ELPIDIO QUIRINO, Ilocos Sur -- The peaceful surrender of a top regional leader of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army who carried P1 million reward on his head, and his two companions was a product of a human approach hatched for years by a highly-respected professional police official who had actually risked his life just to convince the top rebel leader to yield and live a normal way of life.

Supt. Ricardo B. Dayag Jr.’s efforts in negotiating single-handedly the surrender of Edgardo Molina, alias ka Dong/Bobby was actually a breath-taking mission that no one perhaps would dare duplicate.

“Pinaakyat akong mag-isa sa kabundukang kampo ng mga rebelde sa Abra na walang dalang baril at ang aking tanging sandata lamang ay ang aking paniniwala na hindi nila ako papatayin para makapag-usap ng masinsinan sa ngalan ng katahimikan (I was made to go up the mountain lair of the NPA in Abra without any gun or weapon with only my belief that they would not kill me so we could talk intently in the name of peace,)” recalled Dayag, now the incumbent commanding officer of the 103rd PNP provincial mobile group based in this camp.

Dayag said to avoid being suspected of having connection with the rebels, he had always informed his boss, then regional police intelligence chief of the Cordillera Region, Supt. Samuel B. Diciano, about his mission. “Nagpapaalam ako noon kay Col. Diciano na may mission ako at tinutulongan niya ako sa panggastos (I told Col. Diciano I had a mission and he helped me with the expenses.)”

Joining Molina in surrendering were Edwin Balawag, alias Ka Bagyan and Rosemarie Domingo, ka Ramses, two die-hard rebels who like Molina, operated along the provinces of Abra, Ilocos Sur and neighboring areas in the north.

The three were presented Nov. 28 by Chief Supt. Luizo C. Ticman, Region 1 police director, to PNP chief Jesus Versoza at the national police headquarters in Camp Crame in Manila.

Earlier, the start of the negotiations came after four elders in the mountainous community of Barangay Buneg, Lacub, Abra where the rebels used to stay approached then Maj. Dayag, now a colonel, who was then detailed with the Abra PNP command. Dayag is a native of Abra.

Molina and his companions chose Dayag, through the four elders, to be the negotiator from government for their surrender. This, after knowing Dayag was popular for teaching swimming lessons to elementary children in the area.

“Nakikita na raw nila ako noon ng mga rebelde at nababalitaan nila ang aking ginagawa, pati yong ginawa kong pagdisiplina sa isang abusadong pulis noon (They told me they have been seeing me teach the kids to swim including how I disciplined abusive policemen then,)” recalled Dayag.

And this was how he was approached by the four elders for the surrender of the three rebels. Asked if he didn’t fear being killed in the mountain by the rebels, Dayag said it was part of his profession being a policeman. “Kasama lahat sa trabaho yan kung pinatay nila ako noon, (That was all part of the job if they killed me,)” said Dayag.

According to Ticman, Molina had a standing warrant for “murder with multiple frustrated murder and carried P1,000,000 reward on his head. The surrender of Molina, Balawag and Domingo was reportedly the result of meetings and intelligence gathering under the police’s “Coplan Hunter” to account for wanted persons.