Large swaths of Metro flooded

Torrential rains yesterday flooded large swaths of Metro Manila and sent schoolchildren home, although most of them may not have gone to school at all yesterday.

The most serious tragedy was when a cement wall collapsed in Valencia City yesterday noon. The ruined wall reportedly buried dead two children, aged 6 and 8. Another adult was reported missing up to press time last night.

In short, here we have the sight of the nation’s metropolis once more caught in the grip of water. Thousands of vehicles were marooned, while many cars and other vehicles remained trapped by floodwaters.

Thank God, we were spared by floods.

There are many other areas of Central and Northern Luzon which were reported to have been threatened by flood waters.

***

Undoubtedly, cultists were the ones behind the desecration of a cadaver of Alberto Pelicano, whose grave was broken into, just a day after the 58-year-old had been buried last June 30.

Police Senior Insp. Anthony Burgos said Pelicano’s remains were broken into by vandals Sunday. His beheaded remains were recovered in a creek several meters from his grave at the Valladolid cemetery.

While initial suspicion tagged enemies of the dead Pelicano, his own children and kin denied that the old man had known enemies who would have gone out of their way to desecrate his remains.

Police eyed the possibility that cultists may have been behind the vandalism. Bago City and Valladolid had several years back been subjected to several desecrations of dead persons for their kneecaps which were used as alleged “anting anting” by cultists.

In short, superstition is the most likely basis for the vandalism of the cadaver of Pelicano.

***

The RU machines in our midst at Sum-ag must be a real boon for Negrense farmers who are eyeing farm mechanization as advocated by the Department of Agriculture.

I am not particularly partial to Ramon Uy’s farm machines. But I just happened to have visited the place several weeks ago and was amazed at how the pieces of farm equipment his foundry had turned out all these years.

So, I just got reminded of their presence here in the province in the face of what Negros Occidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. had announced yesterday that the DA is putting up the Makina Saka 2012 agricultural machinery exposition at the World Trade Center in Pasay City today.

These pieces of farm equipment include hand tractors, four wheel tractors, cultivators, water pumps, transplanters, drug seeder, harvest reapers, threshers, harvesters, and a host of that are needed by agricultural cultivators.

In short, we are lucky that RU Foundry has been churning out many machineries that are badly needed by farmers if we are to increase our farm produce.

I am sure that RU Foundry will be able to produce more if the need arises. Good news. The DA modernization program will subsidize up to 85 percent of the acquisition cost of the farm machineries by qualified farmers and irrigator associations. The remaining 15 percent will be shouldered by the beneficiaries.

Well, the only thing I can say that God must be kind to us to have the RU foundry in a midst. It should be a major help to Negrense farmers to acquire equipment needed to improve their productivity.

****

Police officer Ryan Lumogdang is reportedly one lucky man. Assigned to the Public Safety Management Battalion and posted at Police Station 2, Lumogdang cheated death in the hands of a gang who had stabbed him at the Bacolod Capitol Lagoon.

Lumogdang was with Mitchelle Santillan, 33, a friend, when they spotted a group of suspicious looking group of five men and seven women members of the “Dark Demon” Society. Lumogdang, who was off duty, approached the group and introduced himself as a policeman. The group then suddenly ganged on him.

Lumogdang was stabbed on the chest but his dog tag apparently shielded the knife which failed to penetrate it.

Lumogdang, however, managed to shoot one of the suspects, Edsel Esteban, 32, of Purok Kametal, barangay Mandalagan. He sustained a wound on his right foot.

Police arrested the gang leader, Joemarie Alberto, 22, of Barangay Gahit, EB Magalona in a follow up operation.

In short, a dog tag often serves as a protector from fatal wounds, either by the gun or by a knife.*

back to top