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BY MAE SINGUAY
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Saturday, February 4, 2017
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Families of the victims of killings in Escalante City, Negros Occidental demand that former mayor and now 1st District Rep. Melecio Yap Jr. be arrested. MAE SINGUAY/PN
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BACOLOD City – Families of the victims of killings in Escalante City, Negros Occidental asked a court to order the arrest of former mayor and now 1st District Rep. Melecio Yap Jr. and his accomplices.
They accused Yap of masterminding the deaths of around 28 supporters of political rival Santiago Barcelona between 2007 and 2009. Yap defeated Barcelona in the mayoral race in Escalante City in 2007.
Four counts of murder and one count of frustrated murder were filed on Jan. 13 against Yap and Bernardino Patigas, et al. at the Regional Trial Court Branch 57 in San Carlos City. Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales approved the filing of charges and did not recommend bail for the murder cases.
Yap filed a motion for judicial determination of probable cause. The complainants — spouses Fernando and Teresita Damalerio, and Ancel Damalerio, Francisco Matugas and Russel Lutrago — wanted the motion dismissed, lawyer Renecio Espiritu Jr. said.
“We filed [on Friday, Feb. 3] our Entry of Appearance with Comment/Opposition following the order of the honorable court issued last Jan. 23, 2017,” Espiritu said, adding that they asked the court to issue arrest warrants against the accused.
Teresita Damalerio wanted justice for the “unreasonable” and “untimely” death of their loved ones. The cases have been “dormant and unresolved” since 2007, she stressed.
The complainants also wanted Judge Danilo Amisola to inhibit himself from hearing the cases. His brother-in-law was said to be a consultant for Yap, said Espiritu.
Moreover, Espiritu said the complainants wanted the hearings held in Bacolod City so the proceedings “can proceed with fairness” and “everybody is free to come without fear for their lives.”
He claimed the complainants and the witnesses do not feel safe attending the hearings in the San Carlos City court due to Yap’s “influence” in the area.
“We just want to preserve the integrity of the legal system,” said Espiritu.
Yap maintained his innocence. “It is very unfair that I [am] being charged [with crimes] I did not commit,” he said on Friday. “The New People’s Army (NPA) admitted that those killings were their own making.”
“Am I that influential to the NPA that I can easily direct them to kill? I’m lucky if the NPA just follow what I tell them to do,” Yap said. “These people keep on insisting my involvement. My family was a victim of the NPA. My uncle was killed by the NPA.”
Yap said he cannot be held accountable for “insurgency-related” cases. He also chided the complainants for claiming they fear for their lives.
“How come they hold press interviews where they claim they are unsafe? It means they are not afraid,” said the congressman.
Yap stressed that the charges were “politically motivated.”
“They want me arrested? I also want to get vindicated,” he said. “There is a judicial process to follow, and not just the wishes of the other party.”/PN
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