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Tears escaped his eyes when he heard his children shout ?papa? while running towards him.
For Police Officer (PO)1 Waldo Batac, hearing the voices of Alexandra,3, and Willard Jay, 2, was already enough to relieve the pain of not seeing them for six months.
Batac, 28, was one of the 81 junior policemen detailed at the Regional Mobile Group (RMG) of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas, who were sent to Jolo, Sulu in April for a six-month mission, to augment government forces who were going after the Abu Sayyaf, who were holding hostage Red Cross workers then.
?Lisud kaayo nga malayo ka sa pamilya. Wala ka kahibaw ug unsay mahitabo nimo (It's difficult to be away from your family. You don't know what will happen to you there),? he told .
Batac and 80 other fellow policemen returned to Cebu on Oct. 22, where the group headed by their team leader, Supt. Glenn Cinco, were given a heroes welcome at the Central Visayas Police Regional Office (PRO-7) grounds.
Each of them received a ?Medalya Ng Kagalingan? and ?Medalya ng Kadakilaan? from PRO7 chief Lani-o Nerez.
?We have produced heroes not only of the Police Regional Office but the whole PNP organization,? said Nerez.
Batac said he was honored by the recognition they received from Nerez, but his biggest reward was the sight of his wife and children.
He kissed and hugged his wife, Joy and his two children, when they met after the pinning of their medals.
Batac told that his life in the mountains of Sulu was not easy. They slept on makeshift shanties and took turns in eating and securing their barracks.
While he was away from his family, he was also in unfriendly territory.
?Pero unsaon man trabaho man nato,? he said.
Batac's troop left for Sulu on April 10 to augment military and police troops working to address the hostage crisis there.
The thought of his children helped him survive the encounters they've had during their six-month stay in Sulu, Batac told CEBU DAILY NEWS.
Batac said he would not forget his Sulu experience.
He recalled the May 27 ambush in Maimbong, Sulu where they lost four RMG policemen who came from another unit. Four Abu Sayyaf members also died during the encounter.
?Didto ko nakabati ug buto sa bomba nga mukurog ang yuta (It was there that I heard a bomb blast that would shake the ground),? said Waldo.
Joy said their kids would often ask about their father especially when they are about to sleep. The Batac couple lives in barangay Lahug.
She said that prayers and their constant communication through text messages and phone calls made her survive their six-month separation.
Insp. Henrix Bancoleta, a graduate of Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) batch 2008, said they were always vigilant especially at night time.
Bancoleta who was team leader of Batac's group during the May 27 encounter, said he wanted to make sure that he would come home safe to his wife, who is pregnant with their first child.
He said their group was the first line of defense in encounters.
?I'm glad that we are all alive,? he said.
He said he was also glad that he's home now and would be able to spend more time with his wife.
PRO 7 Chief Nerez said during the awarding ceremony that he was proud of these ?brave policemen.?
