BACOLOD CITY – A New People’s Army rebel recently surrendered to the police in Silay City, Negros Occidental.
Forty-year-old Ka Nonoy, a laborer and a resident of Barangay Guimbala-on, Silay City, turned over a caliber .38 revolver and an improvised 12-gauge double-barrel shotgun.
Ka Nonoy received cash assistance, groceries and a sack of rice and was released to his family following proper documentation.
Classes suspended
Classes were suspended in two barangays in Toboso, Negros Occidental for two days following encounters between the military and the NPA in Sitio Bairan, Barangay Gen. Luna on Tuesday, March 18.
Mayor Madonnah Jaojoco issued an executive order canceling classes on all levels in Barangay Gen. Luna and the Tabun-ac Elementary School in Barangay Tabun-ac on March 19 and 20.
Jaojoco said the gun battles threatened students and school personnel in affected areas. “There is a need to ensure the safety of learners and school personnel,” the mayor said. She said classes will resume on Friday, March 21.
Councilor Richard Jaojoco, in a Facebook post, said that the Army 79th Infantry Battalion has allowed 122 families displaced by the encounter to return home.