THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) assigned more soldiers to join the manhunt for the remaining suspects of the March 4 killing of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo and to maintain order in the province.

The troops, who are from the six Army battalions stationed in Negros Island, will be deployed in the province's third and second districts, AFP Visayas Command (VisCom) Public Information Office chief Lt. Col. Israel Galorio said.

VisCom commander Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo said the troops will be working closely with their Philippine National Police (PNP) counterparts to 'step up the joint law enforcement efforts in order to capture the remaining suspects the soonest possible time.'

Arevalo said the deployment is in compliance with the directive of Defense Officer In Charge Carlito Galvez Jr. and the AFP chief of staff, Gen. Andres Centino, to reinforce troops in Negros to suppress lawlessness in the area.

'The deployment also aims to ease the tension in the province, so as to encourage witnesses to come out, including the witnesses of previous unsolved killing incidents,' Arevalo said.

'There will be no let-up in our security efforts with the PNP. As mentioned by Senior Undersecretary Galvez Jr., this is the day of reckoning, and we will never falter in our efforts to enforce the full might of the law and restore peace and order in the entire Negros Island,' he said.

Four to five suspects are still at large. Four suspects have been arrested and are willing to cooperate in the investigation.

PNP spokesman Col. Jean Fajardo said over the weekend that the newly created joint task force believes that some of the suspects are still in the province.

Fajardo said random checkpoints and roadblocks have been set up in the nearby provinces.

She said an assault rifle used by Degamo's killers was seized from the suspects during pursuit operations.

The gun went through ballistic analysis and cross-matching examination Fajardo said.

The task force is also examining other firearms used, and investigating the 'original owner, seller and buyer' of the vehicles used in the assassination, she said.

The rifle used to kill Degamo was not found during the raids on the houses of Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. and his associates, where the police found several firearms, a hand grenade, and ammunition.

Teves, a political rival of Degamo, has denied involvement in the killing.

Degamo was gunned down inside the yard of his house in Pamplona town while he was talking with a group of constituents. Eight others were also killed in the attack.

Fajardo said the arrested suspects gave 'very, very vital and material' information, which makes the Department of Justice confident that 'we are nearing the solution of this case.'