HERO'S BURIAL. Corporal Jan Oliver Rodriguez, a member of the Philippine National Police-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) who was killed during an encounter in Lanao Del Norte, will be given a hero’s burial by the municipal government of Lingayen in Pangasinan. Rodriguez's remains arrived in his hometown of Barangay Quibaol on Sunday (May 9, 2021). (Photo courtesy of Jac Rodriguez's Facebook Account)
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Corporal Jan Oliver Rodriguez, a member of the Philippine National Police-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) who was killed during an encounter in Lanao Del Norte, will be given a hero’s burial by the municipal government of Lingayen, his hometown.
His remains arrived at his home in Barangay Quibaol here on Sunday.
Rodriguez died during the implementation of the arrest warrant against a certain Naen Ampatua Tumog for violation of Republic Act 10591 or the Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunition at dawn on Saturday.
In a text message, Lingayen Mayor Leopoldo Bataoil, a former police official, said he will give a hero's burial to Rodriguez to honor his heroism and bravery.
In an interview on Monday, Pangasinan Police Provincial Office information officer Maj. Arturo Melchor II said a hero’s burial is deserved by police who died in the line of his duty.
“Rodriguez, like other policemen who stood by their duties to serve and to protect the Filipino citizens, deserves to be given a hero’s burial,” he said. “Among those given a hero’s burial in the past are police (officers) from the province who were part of the fallen Special Action Force 44.”
The bereaved family is yet to decide when and where Rodriguez will be laid to rest.
President Rodrigo Duterte, Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año, PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, and Maj. Gen. Bernabe Balba, former Special Action Force (SAF) director and now the new chief of the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations (DIPO) in the Visayas, sent condolences with flowers.
Rodriguez, 25, the third and only son among five siblings, joined the PNP-SAF service in 2018.
His mother, Erlinda, described Rodriguez as a "humble, silent person" but a responsible son, sibling, cousin, and friend.
"Napakabuti niya. Mapagmahal siya sa ibang mga tao lalo na sa mga bata. Nabibigla na lang kami, nalalaman namin sa iba na may mga tinutulungan siya. Pero di niya sinasabi sa amin (He was a good person. He was loving even to other people, especially children. We were surprised to learn from other people that he was helping some people. But he never told us about it)," she said in an interview with the Philippine News Agency on Sunday.
Erlinda said his son was planning to have their home renovated.
"Dahil sobrang tahimik siya, hindi rin namin alam na may girlfriend siya. Plano rin daw niyang ipakilala sana sa amin kapag dumating siya (Because he was so reserved, we didn’t know that he has a girlfriend. He was planning to introduce her girlfriend to us when he arrives)," she added.
Days before the police operation, Rodriguez contacted his cousins and one of his sisters based abroad telling them that he was planning to surprise his family about his scheduled home vacation starting on May 15.
"Mahilig siya mag-surprise. Sinabi niya sa iba na uuwi sana siya this Friday, pero hindi namin alam. Kapag umuuwi siya, magugulat na lang kami na may kumakatok sa pinto ng mga kwarto namin, siya na pala yung dumating (He liked surprises. He told others that he would be going home this Friday but we don’t know. Every time he came home, we would just be surprised to find somebody knocking at our doors, and it was already him)," his younger sister Jacqueline recalled in a separate interview. (PNA)
