Sino ang dapat managot sa sinapit ng 17-anyos na si Jemboy Baltazar sa gitna ng isang police operation noong August 2? Ano-ano nga ba ang programa ng pamahalaan para matulungan ang mga Pilipinong walang maayos na tirahan? Ang buong pagtutok ng ‘Reporter’s Notebook’ sa mga isyung ‘yan, panoorin sa video.
Journalists Maki Pulido and Jun Veneracion provide in-depth analysis on the biggest news stories in the Philippines.
Watch it every Saturday, 11 PM on GMA. Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes. #ReportersNotebook
Journalists Maki Pulido and Jun Veneracion provide in-depth analysis on the biggest news stories in the Philippines.
Watch it every Saturday, 11 PM on GMA. Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes. #ReportersNotebook
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FunTranscript
00:00 In this cellphone video that was captured in Navotas City on August 2,
00:07 a man with a cane was seen hanging in the middle of the river.
00:14 He was holding the 17-year-old son of Gemboy Baltazar, who was dead.
00:21 Gemboy was at home after being shot in the middle of a police operation.
00:27 The police were the ones who were helping him survive.
00:33 What happened that day?
00:37 Is there an answer to what Gemboy was up to?
00:41 This tree in the middle of the city is not just a grave for the passing by.
00:49 It also serves as a prison for the unreachable.
00:54 What is the story behind this treehouse?
00:57 And why did a man named Tarzan choose to live here?
01:02 This is a house of the dead.
01:04 I sleep here, eat here, and take a bath here.
01:08 This couple instead of being cold, they feel fear and anxiety
01:16 as their first child is about to be born.
01:19 The reason is that they don't have a place to stay.
01:24 They are the unreachable.
01:27 Their experiences are different.
01:29 Their story has a connection.
01:32 They came from the province to live in Manila.
01:37 But their fate is very difficult.
01:40 How can they be helped?
01:45 The only way is to help them.
01:51 Gemboy was on this boat until 1 p.m. on August 2.
02:04 He was diving in the water when suddenly the unreachable 20 police boats arrived.
02:10 Possibly because of fear, Gemboy was thrown into the water.
02:15 The police even rained bullets.
02:18 It took 3 hours for the boat to reach Gemboy.
02:23 When it reached Gemboy, the bullet was dead.
02:28 And he was hit in the head.
02:33 His father, Jesse Baltazar, who is in this video,
02:37 did nothing but to hold his son's head and smash his face.
02:43 According to Gemboy's uncle, he was the one who threw the bullet.
02:50 He was diving in the water when suddenly the police boats arrived.
02:52 It was 2 meters away.
02:54 That's when I got hit.
02:56 He was the one who dived in the water because after the police operation,
02:59 the police suddenly left and Gemboy didn't wait for them to leave.
03:04 Someone hit my forehead.
03:07 I said, "Is this a person?"
03:09 When I held his forehead, I saw his body.
03:14 So I lifted my head and I saw him.
03:17 I said, "It's him."
03:19 I said, "Gemboy!"
03:20 I saw him immediately because he had a hole here.
03:22 I asked someone to help me.
03:24 Two kids were diving.
03:26 The kid was on the buoy.
03:28 Gemboy seemed to be afraid.
03:30 I didn't know what the police wanted to show.
03:34 In the hope of getting some answers from Gemboy's neighbors,
03:38 at the first opportunity since the incident happened,
03:41 Nick returned the boat where the police cornered Gemboy and his companion.
03:47 While looking at the boat, he noticed something like a bloodstain.
03:52 It looks like blood.
03:54 It's a bit red.
03:56 How did the incident happen?
04:01 According to the investigation of the National Capital Region Police Office or NCRPO,
04:06 at around 1 p.m. on August 2,
04:08 the Navotas Police conducted a hot pursuit to arrest a suspect in the murder.
04:14 When they received information that he was in the river,
04:17 Gemboy and his companion were caught by the police.
04:21 The two bullets were diving the boat at that time.
04:25 The place was surrounded by less than 20 police.
04:29 According to the residents we talked to,
04:32 the police suddenly fired bullets.
04:37 The police said, "You went inside."
04:40 "Yes, we went inside."
04:42 "We heard that someone fired bullets."
04:44 "Someone fired an armalight, someone fired a quarantizing gun, there were many shots."
04:49 "The water was splashed."
04:51 "Of course, the warning sheet was on top."
04:54 "There were many people who saw it, even two people."
04:57 "There were many people who saw it, even two people on the other side."
05:00 "There were also many police on the other side."
05:02 The river was between the two barangays where the encounter took place.
05:06 The first barangay where Gemboy lived
05:09 and the second barangay where he lived, Dagat-Dagatan,
05:11 were located on the other side of the river.
05:13 The other barangay was sent to the reporter's notebook.
05:21 We found out from a CCTV footage that day, August 2,
05:26 a vehicle of the Navotas City Police arrived on the riverside around 1 p.m.
05:33 Later, the three policemen went down.
05:38 They seemed to be waiting for someone around,
05:42 and they were seen on the other side of the river.
05:45 A few minutes later, they ran to a corner.
05:53 While one of the policemen was released from the vehicle with a gun.
05:57 All of them were seen on the other side of the river.
06:01 At this time, the shooting of Gemboy was said to have happened.
06:06 Later, the residents went out one by one to take a seat in the first barangay.
06:14 The policemen also left the place.
06:16 After Gemboy was killed,
06:21 this is one of the cases of mistaken identity, according to the chief of the NCRBO.
06:27 The police were wrong.
06:28 That's why when we had it investigated,
06:32 we filed the case immediately.
06:36 What I assure them is that there is no cover-up.
06:39 A few days after the incident,
06:44 Gemboy's mother arrived from Qatar,
06:46 who has been working there as a household helper for two years.
06:50 What's more, she hasn't talked to her daughter for a long time because she was imprisoned in Qatar.
06:55 I was imprisoned because I ran away for one year.
06:58 Then I went out, I didn't stay with my friends anymore, I don't have a job.
07:02 I just borrowed a cell phone from my friend so that I can chat.
07:08 Then she said, "Mari, condolences, because someone was killed."
07:13 I said, "What? Why? Who?"
07:15 Of course, that's the first thing that came out.
07:17 "What? Why? Who?"
07:19 She said, "You don't know that your daughter is dead."
07:23 She just celebrated her birthday on July 4.
07:28 I was supposed to send her birthday gift,
07:30 but it turned out that I was supposed to send money to her funeral.
07:34 I always talk to her picture.
07:38 I said, "I'm sorry, I'm not next to you when that happened to you."
07:46 The story of Gemboy's siblings is a dream to be the symbol of their younger sibling.
07:51 I said, "Boy, I'm sorry for giving you money because that's my money."
07:56 She said, "Dad, I can't give you money because I don't have money."
08:02 Their family's only wish now is justice for Gemboy and to answer the police who are in the operation.
08:11 I hope you will be sorry for what you did to my son.
08:15 Even if you apologize to them for a million pesos, they will not be able to get rid of the pain they caused me.
08:20 According to the Commission on Human Rights or CHR,
08:24 it's time for the entire PNP agency to join the retraining program
08:31 to avoid these incidents.
08:34 Our police admitted that there was really a mistaken identity
08:39 and that's the reason why they surrendered themselves.
08:41 The lapses will be cured through training.
08:45 But the ones who lost their lives because of their lapses,
08:48 we will not be able to return them.
08:50 The right to life is the most important human right.
08:55 The police are now facing reckless imprudence resulting in homicide and administrative charges.
09:02 But the CHR is also conducting its own investigation.
09:07 The purpose of our investigation is just to get the complete picture
09:10 of what really happened during the incident that resulted in the death of Gemboy.
09:16 In the initial investigation, it was found that the bullet hit the back of his head
09:21 and the cause of Gemboy's death was that he fell to the front.
09:25 The number of bullets that hit him also reached two.
09:29 One in the head and one in the right hand.
09:33 There was an autopsy done by Dr. Raquel Fortun.
09:36 It was found that the fatal wound that caused the death of Gemboy
09:41 was the gunshot wound here in the back that exited in front.
09:46 It was in the back or maybe it was in the forehead because the person was in the water.
09:49 The criminal aspect of the case is already filed with the prosecutor's office of Navotas.
09:54 When we went to the Navotas City Police, they did not initiate an interview.
09:59 But they confirmed that six police officers were in jail during the operation on August 2.
10:05 We talked to an official of Navotas City Police and he said that
10:09 27 members of Navotas Police Substation 4, including his chief, were relieved from their positions.
10:16 Of those 27, 6 were charged with reckless imprudence resulting to homicide.
10:23 Those 6 are now in custody.
10:26 In their face, in relation to our operational procedure,
10:31 we saw that there was no threat, no aggression that came from the person being arrested,
10:39 but the firearms were used immediately.
10:42 We also saw that there was a violation of our investigation procedures.
10:48 We should have filed an administrative complaint against them.
10:55 [indistinct chatter]
10:57 On August 16, 2023, Jemboy Baltasar was taken to his final resting place.
11:04 [sobbing]
11:08 On the same day of Jemboy's burial,
11:10 August 16, 2017,
11:14 a murder case was filed against a gunman.
11:21 It has been 15 years since a gunman was found lying on the side of a wall near a garbage dump in Barangay 160, Caloocan City,
11:29 Kian Lloyd de los Santos.
11:32 Like Jemboy, Kian was 17 years old.
11:35 Kian de los Santos was killed after being shot in a drug operation by the Caloocan City Police.
11:42 The CCTV also captured the gunman's face before he was found dead in a garbage dump.
11:50 Like Jemboy, Kian's mother was also a migrant worker.
11:53 It was painful.
11:55 I couldn't fight because I knew that he was being bullied.
11:59 He told his mother that they made me suffer, that I had nothing to do with it.
12:05 Why me?
12:06 After an investigation, it was proven that the gunman was not a fighter.
12:14 On November 2018, the three Caloocan Police were found guilty of the murder of Kian de los Santos.
12:21 On the last day of the Balthazar family's funeral at Labini Jemboy,
12:29 they hoped that the family members would be able to answer their questions and give them an answer.
12:37 I'm Mackie Pulido, and this is the Reporter's Notebook.
12:42 [music]
12:44 This is a big tree at first glance, but if you look closely and look up closely,
12:49 you will see a small barong-barong that is attached to the branch of the tree.
12:54 The owner of this treehouse in the city is Mang Joel Capinig, a.k.a. Starsan, 51 years old.
13:01 I just rest on it, I just lie down on it.
13:04 It's just a cycle, there's no bell, it's just a roof.
13:08 When it rains, I put a wall there.
13:11 The walls are removed by the workers, the chairman.
13:16 I moved it, I moved it four times.
13:19 Mang Joel and I joined him in climbing his small treehouse.
13:23 This is my house, it's high.
13:29 The branches of the tree and the roots serve as the foundation of his house.
13:35 [music]
13:48 This is where I live, this is where I sleep.
13:51 [music]
13:56 I also wash here.
13:58 I also have a rope to carry water.
14:03 I also have a bathtub, I have almost everything.
14:05 Mang Joel has a story, there were times when he fell here.
14:10 It's a mess here, all the things are like that.
14:16 This is where they grow, the vegetables.
14:19 Aside from the fact that there's no cost, it's hard to move around because you can't move.
14:25 [music]
14:28 I'm just here, there's no house, there's no service, I'm alone.
14:34 [music]
14:36 What I do is, this is my garden.
14:39 I plant here.
14:41 This is my garden.
14:44 This is where I go around the world.
14:47 [music]
14:49 I have a job.
14:53 I'm nervous.
14:56 And I have great power.
14:59 [music]
15:12 Mang Joel's life is a tricycle delivery man.
15:20 He earns his living by buying food and paying for the boundary for the owner of the tricycle.
15:26 How did he end up in Manila?
15:29 Mang Joel is from Batangas.
15:32 He's only 14 years old when he fell here in Manila.
15:36 I'm still working, I'm still in the field.
15:40 I'll just go back and forth between Manila and Batangas.
15:44 When I get tired of Batangas, I'll go back to Manila and apply for a job.
15:50 Mang Joel used to live in his house in Tondo.
15:56 But when his house died, he had to leave and forced to live alone.
16:02 Despite the hardship, he still wants to live in Manila.
16:09 It's like Manila. It's the same in Indonesia.
16:13 It's just like here.
16:15 You just have to move here and there.
16:21 It's just like that.
16:23 Under the tree where Mang Joel's treehouse is located,
16:27 there are also some homeless individuals who are always there.
16:31 This carton is the bed used by Melissa Trinidad,
16:36 who is 48 years old and has been in Manila for 7 years.
16:39 She's from Samar.
16:41 I used to live in Samar, in our province.
16:44 Now, someone brought me a job.
16:46 I can work there, I can help.
16:50 Of course, our life in the village is hard.
16:55 We just walk and walk.
16:58 I'm a farmer. I'm a farmer.
17:03 The problem is, the job she was hoping to become a housekeeper,
17:07 turned out to be a lie.
17:09 That's why she went home to the garbage dump.
17:11 I also go to the dump.
17:14 I see them.
17:16 Sometimes, they earn 300 pesos per day.
17:19 When I'm hungry, I just sleep.
17:22 According to the Philippine Institute for Development Studies,
17:25 12,000 families live on the streets of Metro Manila.
17:30 Among those, their spouses are Vergil and Norayma.
17:34 They are from Basilan, Mindanao.
17:37 But before I came here, what did you think?
17:42 I said, I'll test if Manila is good or not.
17:45 If we're not hungry in Manila,
17:48 I'll just get a lot of money and we'll eat well in Manila.
17:52 The problem is, the construction workers are decreasing.
17:57 Vergil's company is also declining.
17:58 And he's one of the people who got fired.
18:00 He's been unemployed for 4 months and has no income.
18:03 What's the most difficult thing you've experienced on the streets?
18:07 It's hard to be alone.
18:09 The wife is afraid.
18:13 Norayma's birthday is a month away,
18:15 but they still can't get along.
18:18 This Wednesday, we accompanied the wife to DSWD
18:25 to ask if they are qualified in the Balik Provincia Program.
18:28 The Balik Provincia Program is a program that allows our countrymen to go home
18:36 if they want to return to their province.
18:38 When it comes to DSWD,
18:41 the wife is allowed to stay in a shelter.
18:44 Even if they want to go home to Basilan,
18:48 this won't happen because Mrs. is in a bad condition.
18:52 Her month is coming.
18:54 So what will happen is,
18:55 they will stay in the DSWD shelter in Mandaluyong until she gives birth.
19:00 The root of why some people choose to go to the cities is deep.
19:08 The reason why the people in the province are chasing them
19:13 to leave Manila is because they are chasing a high salary.
19:19 Because there are different salaries in each region.
19:23 The higher the salary, the more people will like it.
19:28 That's why Metro Manila is crowded because there are high salaries here.
19:33 The wife's wish is to have a national minimum wage
19:37 so that the people in the province don't have to go to Manila.
19:41 That's why it's one of our calls to have a national minimum wage
19:46 so that the people in the province don't have to go to Metro Manila.
19:51 They will have a decent salary there
19:55 so that they can sustain their daily expenses.
19:59 It will also help if rural areas will be allowed to be expanded.
20:04 That means, industries and government agencies will be spread throughout the country.
20:11 This way, there will be more jobs and opportunities.
20:15 The DSWD launched the Offland Pag-abot.
20:20 It's a plan to provide intervention to the people living on the streets
20:23 like giving livelihood opportunities and shelter assistance.
20:27 I was trying to expand social protection
20:31 especially to the families in street situations.
20:36 If there are people in need of protection,
20:40 I think they will be more than welcome because their vulnerabilities are high.
20:44 Thousands of families live on the streets of the province.
20:48 Many of them are from the province.
20:50 While they are not given a decent and sufficient opportunity in the province,
20:54 it is still a misconception that there is a good life waiting for them in Metro Manila.
20:59 I am Jun Veneracion and this is Reporters' Notebook.
21:04 [Music]
21:26 you