A former student of the University of the Philippines Cebu was among five alleged rebels killed in an encounter between the 15th Infantry Battalion and the New People’s Army in Cauayan, Negros Occidental, on Saturday.
Vince Francis Yncierto Dingding, alias Poy, was an active student leader who joined the Kabataan Partylist Cebu and was later allegedly recruited into the underground movement Kabataang Makabayan
The Army on Monday said he was a political instructor of the New People’s Army Southwest Front-D in Negros and a resident of Capitol Site Poblacion, Cebu City.
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) in a statement Monday expressed deep sadness over the death of Dingding, “in a statement Monday expressed deep sadness over the death of Dingding, “a former student leader whose life and promise ended in a recent armed encounter in Cauayan, Negros Occidental”.
Publicly available records show that Dingding once moved within student leadership circles and was associated with the University of the Philippines Cebu community, the NTF-ELCAC said.
“Dingding was a student leader and council official during his years in UP Cebu — a profile not uncommon among idealistic young Filipinos who enter civic and advocacy spaces motivated by a sincere desire to contribute to social change and national development,” it said, adding that he was also active in the Kabataan Partylist.
“His death is another painful reminder of the continuing tragedy caused by the CPP-NPA-NDF terror-grooming pipeline—a process that preys on the idealism of young Filipinos and draws them from advocacy spaces into underground networks and, eventually, armed struggle,” the NTF-ELCAC said.
Dingding reportedly served in political and organizational functions within the terrorist movement’s Southeast Front structures in Negros, the NTF-ELCAC said.
“Vince Francis Dingding must not become just another casualty statistic. His story should stand as a painful national reminder: every wasted youth is a loss to the Filipino people, and peace, opportunity, vigilance, and prevention remain our best defense against the cycle of deception, violence, and death,” it said.
His death reflects a troubling pattern that has surfaced repeatedly in previous cases, including the April 19 encounter in Toboso, Negros Occidental, where some of those killed were young, educated, and idealistic individuals whose journeys allegedly moved through activist spaces, student environments, or social networks before ending inside armed underground structures, NTF-ELCAC said.
Families, schools, universities, communities, and institutions must work together to recognize early warning signs, protect the youth, and ensure that legitimate social concern is never exploited as a pathway to violence, the NTF-ELCAC said.
Tug-ani, the official student publication of UP Cebu on Facebook, said Dingding was computer science alumnus and student leader at the university.
Dingding previously served in the UP Cebu University Student Council as vice chairperson in 2015, councilor in 2014, and second-year representative in 2013. He was also affiliated with the mass organizations Nagkahiusang Kusog sa Estudyante and Kabataan Partylist Cebu, Tug-ani said.
Within the university and broader Cebu community, Dingding was known for campaigns centered on student rights, education, and human rights advocacy.
The army said also killed in Saturday’s encounter were:
- Rolando Dantes Jr. alias “Mistah,” “Ana,” “Anyo,” “Arnel,” and “Roman” – commanding officer of the, Southwest Front-D who was a resident of Sipalay City and Barangay Camalanda-an, Cauayan.
- Jobert Casipong alias “John,” “Ruby” and “Ramram” – a Southwest Front-D member from Sipalay City Negros Occidental.
- Gilbert Tingson alias “Ryan” and “Kolintong” – Southwest Front-D member from Sipalay City, Negros Occidental.
- Alex Chavez Languita alias “Axel” – a Southeast Front-D member form Barangay Kabulakan, Santa Catalina.
The five alleged NPA rebels were killed in a series of armed encounters between 15th Infantry Battalion soldiers in the hinterlands of barangays Abaca and Poblacion in Cauayan, Negros Occidental, on Saturday, have been linked to the murder of 26 civilians since 2025.
The fatalities were members of the NPA’sSouth-West Front, Komiteng-Rehiyon Negros, responsible for the liquidation of 23 civilians in 2025 and three this year in Negros Island, Brig. Gen. Jason Jumawan, commander of the Army’s 302nd Infantry Brigade, said Sunday.
EVACUEES
Cauayan Mayor John Rey Tabujara said 116 families with 468 individuals evacuated during the encounters on Saturday for their safety but went home on Sunday.
The Cauayan municipal government declared the NPA persona non grata in the town in 2024 and that position remains today, he said.
The mayor on Sunday had condemned the “violence, intimidation and disturbance” caused by the NPA in his town.*
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