The killing of Dr. Avelex Amor

On Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2018, Dr. Avelex Salinas Amor, 43, was driving from Canlaon City to Dumaguete. He stopped by a deserted portion of the highway in Barangay Basak in Guihulngan City, and alighted from his vehicle. One of three men on a motorcycle, who had apparently been trailing his car, passed by and shot him dead.

Dr. Avelex died with P20 in his pocket, and a debt of P30,000 at the local pharmacy for medicines that all went to his patients.

The media in Dumaguete was ablaze with the story of the doctor’s killing. The MetroPost, our main source of facts for our column, reported that on Nov. 26, at the funeral of the doctor, three-fourths of the  staff members of the hospital the doctor served pinned black ribbon on their shirts to express their grief and anger over his death.

Avelex Amor knew he was in for trouble when he was appointed as chief of the Canlaon District Hospital on Aug. 6.

MetroPost reported that the assignment was dreaded by doctors because four others who were appointed  before Avelex, were unceremoniously replaced after they reportedly had disagreements with a hospital employee believed to have “strong political connection.”

One of the first things Avelex did when he assumed office was to require all transactions in the hospital, especially in the evening when there was no cashier on duty, to be recorded in a logbook.

The policy resulted in an increase in the hospital income by P40,000 in just two weeks.

He was firm as chief of hospital, refusing for instance, to sign tampered Daily Time Records. At one point this was made an issue against him on social media, presumably by staff not paid their salaries due to tampered DTRs.

After a six-day stint as chief of hospital, Avelex was replaced by a subordinate, Dr. Florencio Juplo II.  But he was reinstated as chief of hospital in September.

After Avelex’s death, Dr. Juplo resigned and went to his hometown, Castellana, Negros Occidental.

Adlai Amor, Avelex’s uncle, related to this columnist that Avelex’s  parents, Alex and Boots Amor,  met in the barricades of Manila protesting against the Marcos dictatorship in the 1970s. They called their son RedRed. Adlai, who said Avelex was his favorite eldest nephew, called him Doki.

Red, or Doki, if you may, was an impish boy, who had a run of family houses where all his aunts and uncles spoiled him. He went through kindergarten, elementary, and high school at Silliman University, followed by college at the University of the Philippines in Los Banos.

According to Adlai, Avelex eventually became a doctor “thanks to thousands of hens who laid an egg a day so that he can finish his medical degree from the Cebu Institute of Medicine. His medical degree was literally earned one egg at a time.”

He  earned diplomates in occupational health and diabetes. Those diplomates were earned with the help of Adlai’s brother’s “underground army – an army of worms which produced earth castings for the superior organic fertilizer that his parents still produce.”

Avelex could have earned lots of money by working abroad, but he chose to stay home, opening a small clinic and a wellness club in the public market of Dumaguete. “He wanted to be at SM – Sa Mercado – and not in some fancy mall or at a medical center. Through the wellness clinic, he tackled the epidemic of diabetes that is plaguing our country,” wrote Adlai.

Avelex chose to shun the temptations of a comfortable life as a doctor in a city hospital to live among the poor patients in Siquijor, and in the municipalities of Dauin, Sta. Catalina, Bindoy, and finally in Canlaon City in Negros Oriental.

“He was a real Doctor to the Barrios,” his mother Boots, said, recalling how her son once got a bank loan of P700,000 just to buy his medicines for his patients.

His uncle Adlai said that since they observed that Avelex would always need money because of his passion to help patients, the Amor family decided to donate to him, the eldest nephew, a dormitory in Dumaguete they had inherited from their grandparents so he could accept lodgers and augment his income.

Avelex also took to selling herbal products as a sideline.

Left with no medical doctor, the Canlaon District Hospital was forced to reassign their patients to other hospitals. The Provincial Health Office, meanwhile, assigned two doctors to the Canlaon District Hospital on Nov. 22.

Avelex’ father, Alex Amor Jr., Rotary International District 3860 assistant governor, said his son died for his principles.

“Despite the threats, he chose to serve and die for the people. It was a worthy death.”

Avelex’ remains were  interred at the Dumaguete Memorial Park in a protest funeral on Monday, Nov. 26, after a funeral service at the Silliman University Church.

At this writing, we still await the results of the investigation into the killing of the “doctor to the barrios.” Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo has ordered the creation of a Special Investigation Task Group to probe the killing. 
He issued  Executive Order No. 20-2018, directing Acting Provincial Police Director Senior Supt. Raul Tacaca to create “Task Force Avelex” to investigate the killing of Dr. Amor, and “speed up the resolution of the case, and bring the perpetrators to the bars of justice.”

MetroPost reported that Tacaca would head “Task Force Avelex” with the Guihulngan and Canlaon police. Also taking part in the investigation are the provincial units of the Criminal Investigation & Detection Group, and the Philippine National Police Crime Laboratory in Dumaguete. 
He said they are considering a number of angles in the killing of the doctor, with the motive pointing heavily toward being work-related.

“Gagawa kami ng background check ng mga previous cases sa kanya, kasi may mga nakalaban siya, may mga nagreklamo sa kanya,” Tacaca said (We will do a background check on previous cases against him, as he went against some people, some complained against him).  

Adlai Amor said “We do not know who killed Avelex,  but more importantly, the people who ordered his killing.. . We will fight back by helping train more doctors to work with poor Filipinos, especially in the rural areas.” 

The Amor families have agreed to establish the Dr. Avelex S. Amor Fellowship in Medicine at Silliman University to help train new doctors as their “response to the senseless violence that ended Doki’s  life.”

* * *

Email: [email protected]