For decades, violence in Himamaylan’s upland communities has repeatedly torn through families—claiming another member of the Tingal clan on Tuesday, December 2, when alleged New People’s Army (NPA) leader Ruben Tingal was killed in a clash with government troops in Sitio Cabagal, Barangay Buenavista.
Soldiers from the 94th Infantry Battalion killed Tingal, known by the alias “Ka Marcos,” after a 15-minute firefight with five suspected rebels, of whom he was allegedly a part.
The troops said that they responded to appeals from residents who reported that armed men had been extorting money and forcing them to leave their homes.
Ruben’s death mirrors the killing of his younger brother, Crispin Tingal Jr., in May 2023 during an encounter also in Barangay Buenavista.
The military had tagged Crispin as a rebel, but his family insisted he was a farmer and a father of seven.
That 2023 clash wounded two soldiers, injured a female civilian with a stray bullet, and drove 86 families from nearby Kabankalan sitios to evacuate to safety.
Now, with another brother dead, the Tingal family faces renewed grief, caught once again in the decades-old conflict that continues to shape life in the remote hills of the city.
Meanwhile, the military said it continues to pursue the remaining rebels who fled after Tuesday’s firefight.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, contributes to Negros Daily Bulletin, and maintains a blog on Medium.