Degamo widow vows to end Teves rule

Janice Degamo —JANICE DEGAMO FACEBOOK

DUMAGUETE CITY—The widow of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo announced the creation of a “united team” that will try to end the rule of the Teves political clan and ensure that peace will reign in the province.

Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo, through a video on her social media page on March 4, said her family had formed an alliance with the Sagarbarria clan, where the incumbent governor belongs, in preparation for the 2025 elections. The announcement was timed with the first anniversary of the murder of Roel Degamo and nine other people inside the family compound in Pamplona,

“This is for the sake of peace in Negros Oriental. If you put two peaceful people together, peace will be achieved. Peace is greater than any personal ambition,” Janice said.

She did not mention what particular position she and Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria would run for but there were reports that Janice may run for representative of the third congressional district while Sagarbarria, who became governor after Roel’s successor Carlo Jorge Joan Reyes died on May 31 last year, would seek the gubernatorial post.

READ: 3 suspects in murder of Negros Oriental governor nabbed

The third district is the bailiwick of the Teveses. It used to be represented by Arnolfo Teves Jr. until he was expelled from the House of Representatives in August last year for disorderly behavior and violation of the Code of Conduct of the lower chamber. Teves was also linked to the murder of Degamo.

“It is clear that we are united. The first step is the merging of leaders. This is a sign for a better Negros Oriental and an ultimately peaceful province,” said Sagarbarria in a separate statement.

Motorcade

The Degamo family marked the first death anniversary of Roel through a motorcade from Pamplona to Siaton town, some 100 kilometers away, where he was laid to rest. Supporters also joined the motorcade that ran for more than two hours.

Roel was in a meeting with his constituents in the residential compound in Pamplona on March 4 last year when armed men barged in and started shooting them. Nine others were in that attack.

Eleven suspects were later arrested and initially linked Teves to the plot to kill Degamo. Most of the suspects, however, recanted their confessions after they were provided with lawyers.

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This, however, did not stop prosecutors from filing charges against Teves in court.

Teves has since gone into hiding after he became the subject of an arrest warrant issued by a Manila Regional Trial Court. He has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attack on Degamo.

Just last month, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla confirmed that the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) had issued a red notice for Teves.

Remulla said the issuance of the red notice meant that there would be an “active search” for Teves, who was reportedly hiding in East Timor after his petition for political asylum was denied.

According to Interpol, a red notice is not an international arrest warrant but a “request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.”

Teves is the older brother of Pryde Henry, whose victory in the May 2022 gubernatorial race was nullified by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) after votes of nuisance candidate Grego Gaudia, who used the name “Ruel Degamo,” were voided in Roel’s favor.

Stopping armed groups

Pryde Henry served as governor of Negros Oriental for just four months before he was forced to step down from his post to pave the way for Roel to assume the post.

Lt. Col. Gerard Ace Pelare, spokesperson for the Central Visayas police, said his office had deployed more personnel throughout Negros Oriental to maintain peace and order as well as to stop armed groups with pending warrants of arrest for murder following the slaying of Degamo.

“The peace and order situation in Negros Oriental is very peaceful. There is a dramatic decrease in crimes committed and recorded, including shooting incidents, which have decreased to the minimum level,” he said.

He cited a survey by the website travelsafe-abroad.com which ranked Dumaguete City, the capital of Negros Oriental, as the fourth safest city in the Philippines. Pelare said the survey was conducted eight months after the governor’s murder.

He, however, cautioned the people of Negros Oriental to be vigilant due to the presence of rebel groups, particularly in rural areas.

The police, Pelare said, are still conducting operations against individuals suspected to be associated with Teves.