By Eva C. Visperas

 

DECEMBER, the month of joy, warmth, and festive lights. It’s that magical time of year when every town and city in Pangasinan glows with vibrant Christmas displays, their lights shimmering in the cool evening air.

It’s supposed to be a time of family gatherings, laughter, and sharing stories over festive food. In the heart of it all, there’s a sense of hope, of peace descending upon our little province.

But this December, something broke that peace. Something so cruel, so sudden, that it left many of us in disbelief. A life was stolen, and with it, the spirit of Christmas for so many.

It was around 11 p.m. when the news reached me — an urgent, heartbreaking text on my phone that would shatter my peaceful night. Councilor Ponciano “Onyok” Onia Jr., a well-known figure in Umingan and across Pangasinan, and a friend to many, was dead. He had been gunned down, ambushed in a brazen attack by two motorcycle-riding gunmen.

The news was surreal. How could this happen? I had just seen him a week earlier, smiling, engaged in a long conversation with our mutual friend, Yoly S. at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. It was a normal day, nothing seemed out of place. And now — this. A tragic end to a life that had only just begun to bloom with promises of more service and dedication.

I immediately reached out to Yoly, who was devastated. Yoly had known Kap Onyok, as she affectionately called him, for years. He used to be a barangay captain. They had worked together through the Abono Partylist, with Onyok serving as its national president. Yoly, too, had ties to the party-list through its founding chairman, Engr. Rosendo So. Their connection went beyond politics.

Councilor Onyok, a 59-year-old public servant, was ambushed in Barangay Lubong, Umingan, on December 7. He was driving his Toyota Fortuner, accompanied by two employees, when the gunmen attacked.

I could still remember the last time I saw him. It was just a week earlier at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan session. I had been there, as usual, covering the session. Yoly and Onyok had shared a moment — a warm reunion, catching up after months of busy schedules. That was the last time we would see him alive.

News of his tragic death spread quickly, and with it came a wave of condemnation. Local officials, community leaders, and ordinary citizens alike expressed their outrage.

There was no place for this kind of violence in Pangasinan, they all said. “Pasko pa naman,” Vice Governor Mark Lambino told local newsmen after their session at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan. “December should be a time for families to be together, for joy, for love. Not for this kind of senseless brutality,” he said.

The provincial police, led by Colonel Rollyfer Capoquian, formed a Special Investigation Task Group, hoping to bring swift justice to the Onia family and the people of Umingan. They are exploring all possible motives, from personal grudges to political or business-related conflicts.

It’s a bitter truth that, in the years I’ve been a reporter in Pangasinan, I’ve covered many killings. The list of murdered public servants grows longer with each passing year. Barangay captains, councilors, vice mayors, mayors — all taken away too soon, their lives snuffed out in the most brutal of ways.

It may take time, but I believe the truth will come to light, and justice will prevail.

In the end, it’s not just about catching the killers. It’s about ensuring that no more lives are lost to senseless violence. It’s about preserving the sanctity of life and holding on to the values that make our communities strong.

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