Slain mayors: Tanauan Mayor Antonio Halili and General Tinio Mayor Ferdinand Bote
The killings of two town mayors this week, if proven to be connected, were probably meant to “shame” the Duterte administration, Senator JV Ejercito said on Wednesday.
However, Ejercito, who is part of the administration bloc in the Senate, said he hopes he was wrong about his theory.
“I’m a little bit alarmed kasi two days dalawang mayor ( because two mayors [were killed] in two days),” he told reporters, referring to Tanuan Mayor Antonio Halili and Mayor Ferdinand Bote of General Tinio town in Nueva Ecija.
Halili was gunned down by still unidentified suspects while attending the flag ceremony at the city hall on Monday while Bote was killed in an ambush in Cabanatuan City a day after.
READ: Another mayor killed in ambush
“It’s alarming. Kung sino ang gumagawa nito, I hope na magkaiba ito, sana hindi konektado. Pero parang tinitingnan ko dito, it’s intended to shame probably the government kung saka-sakali pero wala pa naman tayong proof pero the PNP (Philippine National Police) has to step up,” Ejercito said.
(Whoever is doing this, I hope these are not connected. But I think it’s intended to shame probably the government. We don’t proof but the PNP has to step up.)
“I hope I’m wrong pero kung mapapatunayan na iisa ang gumawa nito at konektado, it’s probably intended to shame the government,” he stressed.
(I hope I’m wrong but if it is proven that these are connected and only one person is behind these, it’s probably intended to shame the government.)
The senator also expressed concern that the killings in the country would affect the economy.
“How can we invite investors if we have this kind of atmosphere…?” Ejercito further asked. /vvp