Monday, August 09, 2004 Arroyo adviser killed in Pasig car mishap By Jonathan F. Fernandez
MANILA -- Presidential adviser on resettlement Nestor Ponce Jr. died while two others, including his wife, were injured in a car accident in Pasig City Sunday morning.
Ponce, 53, succumbed to severe head and body injuries. His wife Evangeline was injured and is now being treated at the Medical City Hospital based in Pasig City.
Informed about the accident, Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said: "We are saddened to hear about the untimely death of Presidential Adviser Nestor Ponce. He will surely be missed."
Police investigating the case said Ponce's vehicle collided with a Land Cruiser driven by one Jason Ivler around 5:30 a.m. along the southbound lane of the C5 Ortigas flyover in Barangay Ugong.
Ivler sustained minor injuries from the collision. He was brought to the Quirino Medical Center in Quezon City.
Senior Insp. Fernando Lumbania, chief of Pasig City traffic police, said Ponce's Isuzu Trooper was traversing the flyover when it was hit by Ivler's Toyota Prado Cruiser bearing diplomatic plate 23370 coming from the opposite lane.
Traffic investigators said Ivler lost control of his vehicle and it crashed into the vehicle of the Ponce couple.
Ponce died on the spot while his wife and Ivler were injured and were rushed by the bystanders in the area to nearby hospitals.
Both vehicles were also extensively damaged.
Police said they are still determining whether Ivler was drunk when the incident took place.
Ponce's body now lies in state at Arlington Homes on Araneta Avenue, Quezon City.
Ponce, after his appointment last year as presidential assistant, worked mostly on issues concerning housing and squatters resettlement.
He was a former representative of the second district of Manila and served as an assistant majority floor leader.
He was a member of the committees on rules and appropriation during his stint as a congressman. With JMR
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