DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental—The 303rd Infantry Brigade awarded the Wounded Personnel Medal (WPM) to four soldiers of the 94th Infantry Battalion who were wounded in action in an encounter with the New People’s Army (NPA) in Barangay Carabalan, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, on Sunday, April 19, 2020.

Read: 3 soldiers dead, 4 wounded in Negros Occ. encounter with NPAs

Colonel Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Infantry Brigade Commander, led the pinning of medals to wounded soldiers Corporal John Cris Laus, Corporal Lismer Jade Tumayao, Private First Class John Paul Geonzon, and Private First Class Alexis Mepranum.

Pasaporte congratulated the recipients of the award for their bravery and demonstration of heroism.

To recall, the troopers from 94IB were conducting community security patrols in response to the series of reports of the presence of communist NPA’s alleged extortion activities from the beneficiaries of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the coronavirus disease ( COVID-19) affected families in the area, when the encountered the rebels.

“The medal symbolizes the bravery of our soldiers in facing our common enemy, the Communist NPA terrorists, and I salute each and everyone of them for their selfless service and dedication in serving the people and protecting the peace in Negros,” Pasaporte said in a statement.

In an earlier report, Pasaporte honored the bravery of the troops of 94th Infantry Battalion in the clash and vowed that there will be no let up in the campaign against the rebels.

Read: Army assures no let up in campaign against NPA

“Their heroism will never be forgotten by the people of Negros. It also motivates us to further continue our mandate to protect our fellow Negrense against this terrorists group and achieve genuine peace in the island,” Pasaporte said. /bmjo