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Tuesday, April 18, 2006
P1M bounty to capture mastermind in dela Victoria slay
CEBU City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has put up a P1 million reward for the arrest of the mastermind in the fatal shooting of Bantay Dagat Commission Chief Elpidio “Jojo” dela Victoria.
Osmeña announced the P1 million cash reward yesterday, which is separate from the P200,000 reward he offered last Wednesday for any information that will lead to the arrest of the gunman.
At the Capitol, the Provincial Board (PB) passed on mass motion a resolution condemning the killing of dela Victoria and requesting the governor to put up a reward for information leading to the arrest of the suspects.
This as Osmeña also announced plans to build a 10-story lighthouse along the shoreline at Kawit Point in honor of dela Victoria.
Once completed, the lighthouse will bear dela Victoria’s plaque, he said.
“Aside from the P200,000 reward for the killer, we’re going to offer a reward of P1 million for the mastermind. Even the triggerman can claim the P1 million if he points to the mastermind and he will qualify to become a state witness. We’re interested in finding the mastermind, not the triggerman,” he told reporters yesterday.
The mayor is eyeing former city administrator and city attorney Alan Gaviola and a retired military colonel to replace de la Victoria.
He said, though, that the Bantay Dagat Commission will have to be divided into two operations once everything is in place.
In his news conference, Osmeña said he is not willing to wait five years before the City Council approved the renaming of Kawit Point to Jojo’s Point.
“By insisting to wait five years, the council is appearing timid on this. We’re not talking about some city engineer who served 25 years due to old age. We’re talking about people who gave up their lives to make our city great,” he said.
In a phone interview yesterday, Commission on Audit legal chief Roy Urgel said the City Government can give the P1.2 million reward as long as they can justify the appropriation.
“As long as there is a clear legal basis for the granting of such amount based on a given situation, dili masango sa audit. But if they have no legal basis, then they will have to explain,” Urgel told Sun.Star Cebu.
Meanwhile, The PB resolution is also asking the governor to give cash rewards to informants who can help solve the case.
A Minglanilla policeman was arrested yesterday, after at least four people identified him as the gunman during a lineup. The mastermind and accomplices, though, have yet to be identified.
PB Member Victor Maambong, who sponsored the resolution, said dela Victoria has been “an active partner of the provincial Government in protecting and preserving the environmental resources of the Province as well as promoting sustainable policies and practices.”
“The Province of Cebu unequivocally condemns the killing of Jojo dela Victoria as an act of bestiality that is abhorred by all modern and civilized society. Verily, Cebu has lost a fearless fighter, consummate advocate and an ideal public servant,” the resolution stated.
Following dela Victoria’s death, Osmeña now wants the Bantay Dagat Commission to be divided into two operations.
Gaviola will be asked to focus on “market denial strategies” and to make sure contraband fish will not be sold in the city’s markets once everything is in place.
“I’ve discussed this with him already, but he hasn’t accepted yet, he’s challenged. He is more familiar with the operations than people give him credit for,” he said of Gaviola, one of those who started the commission.
The other unit will focus on field enforcement against dynamite and illegal fishing within the city’s jurisdiction, which will be headed by a retired military official, who he refused to name.
The City will buy speedboats for this purpose, which will also be used for security preparations for the Asean summit in December, the mayor said.
As to the renaming of Kawit Point, Osmeña said that some councilors already agreed with his proposal, but at least two others expressed their reservations on the matter, saying it is too soon to rename the eight-hectare portion of the SRP after dela Victoria.
To the mayor, the move will help instill the value of self-sacrifice among the Cebuanos and remind everyone about the convictions of well-meaning people.
Besides, he said, the name Kawit Point has no significance for the Cebuanos, “while Jojo’s Point sounds romantic, there’s a good touch to it.” (LCR/MBG)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (April 18, 2006 issue)
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