ILIGAN City ― The tragedy of a plane crash that occurred over Bukidnon, with the pilot's body discovered near the wreckage, evokes memories of another plane crash from decades ago.
This incident took place in 1977, during a time when the government department was known as the Department of Local Government and Community Development (DLGCD), rather than its current name, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
In Northern Mindanao, Cagayan de Oro served as the office location, where Regional Director Leonardo FC Palicte Jr. presided alongside Assistant Regional Director Romulo Ventanilla.
One ordinary day in December of that year, Palicte, Ventanilla, and the Provincial Development Officers from Agusan Sur, Agusan Norte, and Misamis Oriental, along with two additional DLGCD employees, boarded a small private plane to travel to Butuan City. They arrived without incident and attended a meeting there. Afterward, they were scheduled to return to Cagayan de Oro, but the two employees were instructed to stay behind.
As the government officials boarded the plane for their return journey, they vanished — never to be seen again.
At the time, I was also an employee of the department, on a mission of my own. While auditing a public market cooperative, I suddenly received a telegram instructing me to return to CDO immediately.
Once back in CDO, we were all briefed about the missing officials — Palicte and the others had disappeared!
Search teams were dispatched to possible crash sites, including a mountain called Mt. Balatucan near Gingoog. However, after several days of searching, there were no leads, and the group remained unaccounted for. Could they have perished? Most likely.
I still remember Director Palicte clearly; he was an interesting figure, somewhat overweight, with a bald head but a thick beard. He preferred to be called "bungot," which means "beard," rather than "upaw," meaning "hairless."
I also recall the Provincial Development Officer from Agusan Sur. During previous encounters, in my role as a cooperatives examiner, he expressed, "After nineteen years of working in the government, nothing shocks me anymore!"
This statement made me wonder: was there ever a moment he was truly shocked?
Meetings were held for employees regarding the situation, along with prayers, as we hoped for a positive outcome. However, as days turned into weeks, those meetings and prayers became less frequent, as life went on and we returned to our jobs.
Eventually, the incident faded from our collective memory.
Then, several months later, news surfaced that wreckage had been found at a site nearby. Could it be them?
Ultimately, while a wreckage was indeed discovered, it did not belong to Palicte and his party.
To this day, they have never been located.
This was during the martial law era under Ferdinand Marcos Sr., and I remember that he and his wife, Imelda, did not travel together for obvious reasons.
I believe this protocol of not traveling together is still observed by many in both government and private sectors today. It’s a prudent precaution, as everyone knows.
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