Lawmaker killed in ambush

A lawmaker and his police bodyguard were shot dead last night as they were leaving the Mt. Carmel parish church compound in New Manila, Quezon City.

Police investigators identified the fatalities as Abra Rep. Luis Borongan Bersamin, 62, and SPO1 Adelfo Ortega, who was assigned to Bersamin’s security detail.

Bersamin belongs to the administration-affiliated party Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi).

Bersamin’s driver, Allan Sawadan, and a 13-year-old watch-your-car boy identified as Rolly Boy Abadia were wounded in the attack.

Abadia was rushed to the Philippine Orthopedic Hospital for emergency treatment. Sawadan was shot in the thigh as he tried to engage Bersamin’s assailant.

Bersamin was shot repeatedly in the head and body with a caliber .45 pistol as he was leaving the church compound at 5:15 p.m. on board his black Ford E150 van with license plate ZAH 275.

The congressman was on his way home from the wedding of lawyers Pia Bersamin and Nino Delvin. Pia is the daughter of Bersamin’s brother, Court of Appeals Justice Lucas Bersamin. Delvin is the chief of staff of Nueva Ecija Rep. Rodolfo Antonino.

The gunmen were clad in short-sleeved barongs and had been waiting outside the church. One of them entered the church courtyard and was wearing a white barong, possibly to pass himself off as a wedding guest.

This suspect approached Bersamin’s vehicle and shot Ortega before shooting Bersamin.

"The gunman fired at the (bodyguard) first and, when (Bersamin) looked back, (Bersamin) was shot several times," a police officer, who had responded to the crime scene, said.

After shooting Bersamin, the gunmen withdrew towards Gilmore Avenue while firing their guns. One of them, clad in a blue, short-sleeved barong, had kept the motor running on the red XRM motorcycle he was riding and fled toward Aurora Boulevard with the gunman.

"We are still determining the identity of the owner of the motorcycle," Quezon City Police District Intelligence and investigation chief Superintendent Bernabe Balba said.

The red getaway motorcycle was later found abandoned at the corner of Aurora Boulevard and Balete Drive, a kilometer away from the crime scene.

A helmet was left on the motorcycle and the police are now determining where it was purchased to trace its owner.

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano "Sonny" Belmonte Jr. condemned the killing of Bersamin. "I condemn these political killings, which are motivated by rival politics. We will see to it the police will act swiftly on this case," he said.

Belmonte was informed about the killing of Bersamin minutes after it took place by relatives of the congressman, who sent the information through a text message.

Quezon City police director Senior Superintendent Magtanggol Gatdula said the gunman may have been a professional assassin.

Gatdula said eyewitnesses told the police that the gunman managed to change magazines while retreating to his getaway vehicle, without dropping the emptied magazine.

The crime scene was grim, with Bersamin’s lifeless body lying face up, his wedding finery of white, long-sleeved barong and black dress pants stained in the blood that pooled around him.

Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) had secured the area and were conducting their preliminary investigation as of press time.

The Mt. Carmel parish priest had blessed the bodies of the deceased.

Assistant parish priest Fr. Enrique Fuentes declared that the entire church condemned the killing: "It is very unchristian. The people had just finished Mass and they had to kill (Bersamin and Ortega) inside the church compound — and to think it is the Christmas season."

Ilocos Sur Rep. Eric Singson rushed to the Mt. Carmel church upon learning that Bersamin was shot dead. He said he was shocked by the news: "(Bersamin) is a very nice fellow. I never heard that he had enemies. In Congress, he was never involved in any controversy."

Some of Bersamin’s affiliates in Kampi arrived and denounced the killing. Tarlac Rep. Noynoy Aquino of the opposition and other members of the House also arrived after hearing of the incident over the radio and they, too, denounced the killing of Bersamin and Ortega.

Meanwhile, the Mt. Carmel parish church still had weddings and Masses scheduled and the parish carried on with its scheduled rites, though the church compound was closed to members of the press.

Case investigators are still looking into the motives behind the Bersamin slay, though they are not discounting political motives due to the political unrest in Abra and because Bersamin, who was on his second term, may run for Abra governor. According to the official House of Representatives website www.congress.gov.ph, Bersamin served as vice governor of Abra from 1998 to 2001, prior to his two successful runs for a congressional seat.

A lawyer, Bersamin also served as the municipal mayor of Bangued town from June 1997 to March 1998, his first entry into the political arena after a career in banking that spanned 17 years.

Bersamin was the vice chairman of the House committees on dangerous drugs and trade and industry. He was also a member of the House committees on appropriations, agriculture and food, cooperatives development, foreign affairs, national cultural communities, national defense and security, the northwest Luzon growth quadrangle, priority provinces, and public works and highways. — With Delon Porcalla and Perseus Echeminada