Duterte visits wounded gov’t troops in Davao

DAVAO CITY – President Rodrigo Duterte visited on Monday evening eight soldiers and militiamen recently wounded in various encounters with New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in southern and central Mindanao.

At the military hospital in Barangay Panacan here, Duterte also pinned on the injured soldiers and militiamen the Order of Lapu-Lapu Kampilan medals and pledged to give them additional financial assistance.

Among those who got the medal was militiaman, Jimmy Gonzaga, who was injured during the January 25 clash in Paquibato district here, which killed 1Lt. Jarren Relota of the Army’s 16th Infantry Battalion (IB).

Duterte’s visit, which was off limits to media, took place shortly after he arrived in Davao from Albay, where he visited victims of Mt. Mayon’s explosion.

President Duterte was also scheduled to spearhead on Tuesday the launching of Landbank’s financial assistance program and distribution of some P15 million as additional funds for evacuees in Marawi City and Lanao del Sur.

Maj. Ezra Balagtey, the spokesperson of the military’s Eastern Mindanao Command, recalled that Relota was leading soldiers and militiamen under the Bravo Company of 16th IB in responding to a tip about the presence of New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Sitio Quimbao in Barangay Mapula when the clash broke out.

“During the exchange of fire and maneuver, the terrorists detonated an improvised landmine wounding two soldiers while killing Lt. Relota,” Balagtey said in a statement.  /kga