By Eva C. Visperas

 

LET me share with you my harrowing experience chasing the De Lima-Dayan saga. Remember them? I’m sure you do.

The duo, a former Justice secretary and her alleged driver-lover and bagman, were very controversial during the Duterte regime. She was an outspoken critic of former President Duterte. Their names were dragged into alleged illegal drug trading inside the Billibid. As of this writing, two of their cases had been dismissed by the court.

I got interested in Bokal Pacheco after Sixth District Board Member Noel Bince, congratulated her during their session for scoring another legal victory, being the lawyer of Dayan.

But I had a haunting flashback when I interviewed Atty. Heidee Soriano-Pacheco, board member from the Second District, and the lone legal counsel of Ronnie Dayan last Monday.

What vividly came to my mind was a scary chapter in my life as a journalist tasked then to do follow-up story on the controversial tandem.;

It was Saturday, June 7, 2014. I had a scheduled appointment with then Urbiztondo Mayor Ernesto Balolong who agreed to help me find De Lima’s and Dayan’s alleged “love nest” in the town. The mayor promised to have one of his bodyguards accompany us (me, Joel Balolong of Aksyon Radyo Pangasinan and Philippine Star colleague Cesar Ramirez).

I purposely sought the help of Joel, being a Balolong, to help me get the mayor grant my assistance.

At around 7:00 a.m. that day, the mayor phoned me in to remind me about our appointment. I assured him we were coming as I was already preparing for our Urbiztondo trip. He said we should see him first before heading to the barangay where our subject house is located.

Cesar and I waited for Joel at the parking lot of CSI Mall in Lucao while Joel was still doing his work as an anchor of a news and commentary program at that time, and he was interviewing a guest.

Joel was apologetic for arriving late because the interview went overtime, knowing we were several minutes late for our schedule with the mayor. But I said it’s okay. For how can I complain since it was I who requested him to join us to see his “insan” mayor?

While we were at the boundary between San Carlos City and Urbiztondo, we saw speeding vehicles indicating an emergency situation. First, there were ambulances, then police cars, then SWAT men and other private vehicles followed. We wondered what was going on.

I tried to call the police director then, no answer. The mayor, no answer. Other friends, no answer.

We continued driving fast to Urbiztondo and once we were at the Poblacion area, we were greeted with a heartbreaking scene.

Mayor Balolong was shot at around 9:15 a.m., together with his bodyguard and another person, and three others were wounded. They were shot with M16 and 9mm inside a bus terminal that leased the area owned by the mayor.

The mayor was rushed to Elguira Hospital in San Carlos City but was declared dead on arrival by his attending physicians. The other two were brought to Virgen Milagrosa Hospital also in San Carlos City but were also declared dead on arrival.

I felt goosebumps all over my body. I was shivering. Had we arrived on time, to be with the mayor when the assailants attacked, we would have been dead, too.

Few minutes later, we went to Elguira Hospital and saw the mayor in a morgue. My heart kept on pounding, restless and I couldn’t help but cry.

It was mixed emotions that I felt. Sadness over what happened and grateful for arriving late, which, as media colleagues could attest to, I am never late for an appointment. I always arrive earlier than the appointed time.

Indeed, there’s a reason for everything and I believe our guardian angels saved us that day.

Thank God we were late.

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