LORETO, Agusan del Sur, Philippines—He emerged wearing a white shirt, the color of which was a perfect contrast to the black ones worn by his captors.

One of them tightly held his hand.

His face did not show any emotion, but later he expressed the firmness of his loyalty to the government.

Three days after the New People's Army announced the suspension of his freedom, Lieutenant Vicente Cammayo finally became a free man Tuesday when his captors, the NPA's Merardo Arce Command, found a way to release him in the hinterland of the village of Kauswagan here.

His release came a day before his captivity was supposed to mark its second month. He was held by the NPA when he reportedly surrendered to the rebels following an encounter in Sitio Casoon, Anangase village, in Monkayo, Compostela Valley Province on November 7, 2008.

Cammayo opened his interview with the media by thanking God for giving him "a second life."

"I also thank the people who extended help and support for my release. I thank the religious sector and the government…I thank you in behalf of my family," he said.

Later, he admitted about being missing badly his wife, Mariel, and how excited he has been for the coming of their first baby.

"I cannot wait to see and be reunited with my wife. And I am excited to be with her when she delivers our first child," said Cammayo who still wears their gold wedding ring.
He recalled the loneliness of the past Christmas and New Year, being away from his wife.

"Malungkot talaga. (It was really sad.) I spent Christmas and New Year not in a normal way…" he said.

He, however, said the NPA treated him humanely, countering the Army’s insistence that he was wounded or tortured. He added that his statements on video were all true.

"Everything I said in that video were all true. I was not threatened when it was taped," he told the media.

Rigoberto Sanchez, spokesperson of the Merardo Arce Command, said the release of Cammayo could have been done earlier had it not been for the "arrogance and callous disregard for the well-being and safety of the prisoner of war."

"As it was, the Armed Forces of the Philippines made sure that multi-sectoral initiatives for a negotiated release and cessation of military operations remain unheeded despite appeals from the wives of the POWs, GRP (Government of the Philippines) local political leaders and Church people."

Primary actors in the successful and safe release of Cammayo are Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and his daughter, Vice Mayor Sara. Also in the scene were the members of the interfaith group who served as the 3rd party facilitator, apart from the International Committee of the Red Cross, headed by Philippine Independent Church Bishop Delfin Callao and United Church of Christ of the Philippines Bishop Constante Claro, and the Assumption Sisters.

Major Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson for the military's Eastern Mindanao Command based in Davao City, said "punitive actions" have been set against the soldier's abductors.

"These operations are not meant for vengeance...but for justice," Cabangbang said in a phone interview.

He said pressure due to "relentless military operation and not because of goodwill" made the rebels free Cammayo.

"Cammayo has become a burden to the group, so they decided to release him, even choosing Loreto as place of release, which is far from Compostela Valley."