Manila Times

Saturday, February 12, 2005

By Anthony Vargas, Reporter 

THE Armed Forces on Friday hailed as a hero Lt. Col. Dennis Villanueva, who was killed in a mortar attack by Muslim rebels in Jolo Thursday. 

But his widow feels the bemedaled officer could have survived had he been given the proper medical attention earlier. 

The 42-year-old Villanueva was badly wounded by shrapnel after he and his men came under mortar fire in Bitan-Ag, Panamao town, during an offensive against the followers of Nur Misuari, which started Monday. Losing a lot of blood from his wounds, he died several hours later at the Sulu provincial hospital. 

Villanueva “gave his life for our country and people. He is a fine commander who leads the way of his men. He is the hero of our time,” the Armed Forces said in a press statement. 

Eve Villanueva, however, told ABS-CBN news that her husband had a chance to survive had he been immediately evacuated from Panamao. 

Villanueva had to be transported by ambulance to the hospital, which was two and a half hours from Panamao. 

Lt. Col. Restituto Padilla, the Air Force spokesman, said a helicopter could not airlift the wounded commander, because Panamao was heavily forested and there was no clearing on which to land. 

Military doctors said problems arose at the hospital because the right type of blood was not available. The colonel had AB blood, a rare type. 

Villanueva’s body was expected to arrive Friday night at the Saint Ignatius Chapel in Camp Aguinaldo, where it will lie until he is buried. 

Villanueva, a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1986, received numerous awards from the military and even from the international community. 

Villanueva was a recipient of two Gold Cross Medals, 20 Bronze Cross Medals, 16 Military Merit Medals, numerous commendations and a United Nations Service Medal among others. 

Brig. Gen. Agustin Dema-ala, chief of the military’s Task Force Comet, said two other soldiers were killed and several others were also wounded in the Panamao attack. 

Dema-ala identified one of the soldiers killed in the attack as a certain Private First Class Valiente. 

The death toll in the conflict in Sulu has reached 70, with 20 soldiers and 50 men rebels killed.