Guns-for-hire are using our roads as killing fields
We put more closed circuit television cameras on our major intersections simply because the technology is already very affordable and it lets authorities see what is happening in these places. The other day, someone offloaded a dramatic video of two motorcycles along M.L. Quezon Ave. in Barangay Pajo, Lapu-Lapu City, where you could very well see how a man on a motorcycle shot another man on a motorcycle with his wife.
Then the killer stopped, got down, stood over the man he shot and shot him again before speeding away. This video became viral with so many people seeing this grisly daylight murder. The FREEMAN learned that that the victim was Jose Zabate who came from a court hearing at the Lapu-Lapu City Hall of Justice. After the hearing, his wife wanted to have a medical checkup and they were followed by the killer. Initial investigation revealed a possible drug connection as Zabate recently bailed out of detention in March last year on drug charges. So was this killing made to silence him?
Perhaps court authorities should start installing CCTVs in their courts to identify people who might be listening in on the court hearings so they could tail their victims on their way out. Mind you, it was only last February when this also happened to the late Ronda vice mayor Jonnah John Ungab who just came from court and was followed by his killer who shot him dead just across the street. Ungab just came from a court hearing of his client, Kerwin Espinosa, hence you can also say that it was drug-related.
So far, these are the only leads that the police have gathered, but nothing much. Then there was the attempt on the life of Daanbantayan Mayor Vicente Loot who escaped. Since he is also in the list of narco generals as released by Pres. Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte then we can safely conclude that this attempt on his life could be drug-related.
We may not be into drugs and don't expect to be killed by guns-for-hire on motorcycles. However, the police must find ways to stop these killings because innocent people could be hit by stray bullets. We have our children and families using on our roads, which motorcycle assassins-for-hire have made a killing field! Let's stop it now before things get out of hand! We are getting a poor reputation because of these killings!
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Finally, something positive has come out of the House of Representatives when Congress agreed to abolish the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) and the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC). Also included in the chopping block is the Road Board.
Meanwhile, in a vote of 162-10, members of the lower chamber endorsed for Senate approval House Bill no. 7376 seeking to strengthen the Office of the Solicitor General to further enable it to fulfill its role of upholding the best interest of the government. The OSG recently won its landmark case of Quo Warranto to remove an unqualified chief justice.
As expected not everyone is happy now that the PCGG has been abolished. Anakpawis partylist Rep. Ariel Casilao, said that Congress' decision to pass House Bill 7376 was a recipe to "absolve the Marcoses against their crimes to the Filipino people. It's a step backward towards our fight to hold the Marcoses accountable, while it is notable that the PCGG through the years have manifested lackluster performance, it does not mean that the commission should be abolished."
In my book, the PCGG was created by the Cory administration and it only showed how incompetent the Aquinos were in trying to get the money allegedly plundered by the Marcos dictatorship back. I fully concur that it was best to abolish the PCGG. I have nothing much to say about the abolishment of the OGCC. But yes, I fully concur that the Road Board should be abolished! This was a law enacted by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, but much of the money earned from the Road Board was not equally given to all regions in this country. So after the Road Board is abolished, we ought to demand a full accounting of the money they earned and how it was spent!
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