COTABATO CITY — A police patrolman, who is actively involved in the interfaith solidarity promotion projects of their unit, died instantly after his car collided head-on with a 10-wheeler truck in Barangay Glamang in Polomolok, South Cotabato on Wednesday afternoon.

Brig. Gen. James E. Gulmatico, director of the Police Regional Office-12 (PRO-12), told reporters on Thursday that the accident fatality, Patrolman Fahad A. Masula was under the Regional Mobile Force Battalion (RMFB) 12, a large rapid reaction unit of PRO-12.

Mr. Masula, who belonged to a Muslim clan in Koronadal City, helped push forward the police-community relations thrusts of the RMFB 12, according to his companions and superiors in the unit.

He was immediately buried by his relatives in keeping with Islamic tradition of burying the dead within 24 hours after death.

Mr. Masula’s car, a Toyota Vios hit the side of a 10-wheeler truck approaching from the opposite direction of the Koronadal-General Santos Highway in Barangay Glamang in Polomolok.

Witnesses had told barangay officials and police probers that Mr. Masula may have lost control of the wheel due to mechanical trouble, having seen his car wiggled first before hitting the frontal left side of the large green truck.

He was declared dead on arrival by doctors in a hospital where he was brought by emergency responders from the Polomolok local government unit for treatment.

Mr. Gulmatico said the driver of the truck that figured in the accident, Ronnie Anggot Torino, voluntarily yielded to policemen who responded to the incident and turned over to them his driver’s license. — John Felix M. Unson