CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – A wounded soldier feels low morale after losing six colleagues in an encounter with the Islamic State (IS)-linked Dawlah Islamiyah-Maute Group (DI-MG) in Barangay Ramain, Munai, Lanao del Norte on February 18.
PRIVATE Nazareno Provido of the 44th Infantry Battalion rests as he recovers at the Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro City. (Franck Dick Rosete)
Private Nazareno Provido of the 44th Infantry Battalion under the 1st Infantry Division treated the six slain soldiers as his brothers in the unit who guided him when he started his military career three years ago.
“I was wounded and it took a few hours before we were rescued. My mindset at that time was nothing. My tears just kept falling. It was like it flashbacked all the good memories that we had with my seniors,” Provido said in an interview on Thursday, February 22.
Provido, 25, and three other soldiers wounded in the gun battle are currently recuperating at the Camp Evangelista Station Hospital under the 4th Infantry Division here.
Despite what happened, Provido is determined to recover and continue serving the country.
Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), had earlier admitted there was a slight "miscalculation" during the encounter, asserting that there were techniques, tactics, and procedures that were not followed, which resulted in fatalities.
PRIVATE First Class Marvine Aguipo of the 44th Infantry Battalion, who was among those wounded in the encounter, recovers at the Camp Evangelista Station Hospital in Cagayan de Oro City. (Franck Dick Rosete)
Provido was asked about his reaction on Brawner’s statement but he only recalled the circumstance where they stopped in an open area and the enemy was hiding in the cornfield.
“They just went firing ahead of us because they were hiding in the cornfield and we were in an open area,” he said. “Even if we were from afar, they could still see us.”
In spite of the lapses, Brawner, during his visit to the 4th ID headquarters in this city, assured that the AFP would not relieve any personnel in the operating unit and wants to give them a chance.
“Because our operations should be continuing. We cannot afford to have a lapse in our operation,” Brawner said.
VICE President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte answers questions from the media during her visit to wounded soldiers recovering at the Camp Evangelista Station Hospital. (Franck Dick Rosete)
Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte visited the wounded soldiers and provided cash assistance on Thursday.
“Their work is a huge help to our country. We need to showcase to them that we value their service,” said Duterte, who earlier visited the wake of Corporal Reland Tapinit, one of the fatalities in the encounter, in Barangay Maranding, Lala, Lanao del Norte.
She also went to the Adventist Medical Center in Iligan City to see a recuperating soldier.
Duterte was supposed to visit the wake of Private James Porras, one of the slain soldiers, in Agusan del Sur, but it was cancelled due to bad weather, according to the Office of the Vice President (OVP).