4 media workers link claims of death threats to colleague’s slay

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines—Four media workers from this city claimed they received death threats even as the Jan 5 murder of Tatak publisher and editor Christopher Guarin remains unsolved.

Three of them have directly linked the threats to the Guarin murder.

The latest to be purportedly threatened was Allan Mascardo, publisher and editor of the weekly tabloid Dadiangas Balita.

Mascardo said the threatening text message was sent to his phone on Monday and suspected that it has something to do with his condemnation of the Guarin murder.

“You dared the killers of Chris Guarin. You’ll be the next,” Mascardo quoted the text message, sent in Visayan, as saying.

Mascardo is president of local media group Journalist Action Motor Group and has been very vocal in calling for the arrest and prosecution of Guarin’s killers.

Bong Gonzales, program host of Radio dxMD’s daily public affairs program, “Straight to the Point,” told the INQUIRER he received a similar text message on the afternoon of January 13.

Like Mascardo, Gonzales said he had been discussing the Guarin murder in his radio program.

“I did not report it to the police because I trust God that He will protect me,” Gonzales said.

Janjan Macailing, program host of the daily Bombohanay Bigtime over dxES Bombo Radyo here, said a reliable source had informed them that hitmen from Cagayan De Oro had been hired to kill him.

“A reliable source informed me that they hired killers from Cagayan De Oro to carry out the job. I already reported the death threat to the Bula Police Station No. 6 on Monday,” he said.

Macailing said the mastermind of the Guarin slay might be so mad at him because aside from publicly condemning the murder, he was also among those who drummed up support for the P200,000 reward money that journalists here have been trying to raise for the identification and arrest of the killers and the mastermind.

“According to the information relayed to me, four hitmen from Cagayan De Oro arrived in Gensan Thursday last week to carry out the plan to kill me,” Macailing said.

Frankie Gatbonton of radio station dxGS here also said he received threats as early as November last year.

“After what happened to our colleague Chris Guarin, I learned a lesson that death threats should be taken seriously,” Gatbonton said.

Before he was killed, Guarin also received a threatening text message but he ignored it.

Meanwhile, the city police office has issued assurances it would come up with the identity of the suspects in the January 5 murder of journalist Christopher Guarin in two weeks time, Akbayan pary-list Rep. Walden Bello said.

Bello said Senior Supt. Cedrick Train, city police director, issued the assurance when they met Sunday.

Speaking to reporters here, Bello also said President Benigno Aquino III had tasked the police “to prioritize bringing the killers of journalist Chris Guarin to justice.”

“… President Aquino … assured me that he has conferred with the Chief of the Philippine National Police to prioritize bringing the killers of journalist Chris Guarin to justice,” Bello said on Sunday.

“Unless this murder is solved and the perpetrators are prosecuted and sent to jail, the culture of impunity will spread. The President has taken a personal interest in the prompt resolution of this case, and I am confident that the local government led by General Santos City Mayor Darlene Antonino will make an all out effort to bring the killers to justice,” Bello said.