Army's 8th ID calls Fr. Salas a first rate liar

By NINFA B. QUIRANTE, (PIA Samar)
September 6, 2006

CATBALOGAN, Samar  – "The statement made by Fr. Rodrigo Salas, Information Officer of NDF-Eastern Visayas branding the discovery of a mass grave in Sapang Daco, Caulisihan, Inopacan Leyte as a "massive hoax" just confirmed their color- FIRST RATE LIARS!"

This statement was in a press release distributed to PIA and other media outlets in Catbalogan town Tuesday.

The statement by Salas stemmed from the news reports about the discovery of a mass grave of NPA believed to have been victims of the so called ‘purge’ when NPA leadership suspected its own ranks of being governments spies. The grave was reported to be in Inopacan, Leyte.

Capt. Jose Francis de la Fuente, who penned the press release, added that “this is not a question of leadership (PGMA, Gonzales and Gen. Esperon) but of innocent victims who were duped in joining the terrorist NPA and were brutally murdered because of insecure and selfish leaders.”

It also stated that it was not scripted but about people who for years agonizingly waited for their relatives’ safe return and more so about justice for the victims, their relatives and the entire nation.

On Monday, the LSDE with a region-wide circulation featured as its banner story, Fr. Salas claiming that, "the massive hoax desperately aims to cover up the murder by the Arroyo government of more than 700 activists and civilians to date and by demonizing the Communist Party of the Philippines and the New Peoples Army as inherently evil and inhumane."

To this, 18th ID responded with an equally strongly termed denunciation and addressed Fr. Salas and his lot to "Stop calling yourself Father and using the robe as your shield, be true to your conscience, you and your so called human rights advocates, KARAPATAN, KATUNGOD and others know the truth."