Minority senators condemn slay of Trece Martires vice mayor

MANILA, Philippines — Lawmakers on Sunday denounced the ambush of the vice mayor of Trece Martires City in Cavite—the latest local government executive killed in a span of a week—and raised concern over a “climate of chaos and fear” in the country.

Vice Mayor Alex Lubigan died after an unidentified gunman in a Mitsubishi Montero opened fire at his Toyota Hilux along the Trece Martires-Indang road at around 3 p.m. on Saturday. His aide, Romulo Guilemer, also died while being treated at a hospital.

Lubigan’s death came days after the murders of Tanauan City, Batangas Mayor Antonio Halili and General Tinio, Nueva Ecija Mayor Ferdinand Bote.

“Is this a deliberate move to taunt authorities? Are these killings trying to create a climate of chaos and fear in the public?” Sen. Francis Pangilinan, president of the former administration Liberal Party, said in a statement.

Pangilinan called on the Philippine National Police to bring the perpetrators behind bars and to ensure police visibility, especially in critical areas, to prevent another fatal incident.

“What we want is a safe, secure and peaceful society, not a gangster land,” he said.

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PNP Director General Oscar Albayalde said he is “disturbed and saddened by [the killing of Lubigan] and similar incidents involving our local chief executives.”

“We in the PNP are committed [to] getting to the bottom of this and have already tasked our special investigation task groups on the ground to conduct a thorough investigation,” he said.

Sen. Paolo Benigno Aquino IV also offered condolences to the slain town official, whom he described as “competent” and “honest.”

“If we continue using force as a solution to the problems of the nation, our society will not be peaceful and safe,” he said in Filipino.

Local politics is one of the angles being looked into as the motive for the ambush of Lubigan.

He was not included in the list of government officials with suspected links to the illegal drug trade.