Palace task force probes slay of journalist Malabanan

FILE PHOTO Jess Malabanan

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang’s task force on media security is investigating the killing of veteran Filipino journalist Jesus Malabanan, condemning the murder “in the strongest possible terms.”

Cabinet Secretary and acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles on Thursday said the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFMS) is “exploring all angles,” including the possibility that the killing is connected to Malabanan’s work as a journalist.

“[The PFMS] urges everyone with information to come forward to authorities and cooperate with law enforcers in order to immediately bring Mr. Malabanan’s killers to justice,” he said in a statement.

“We condole with the family, loved ones, and colleagues of Mr. Malabanan and assure them that the government will exert all efforts to ensure that those responsible are caught, charged, and convicted for this crime,” Nograles said.

Malabanan, a correspondent for Manila Standard, Bandera and Reuters, was shot dead inside their store in Calbayog, Western Samar at around 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 8, his wife Mila said.

He died instantly from a head shot, she added.

Malabanan, 58, was a defense reporter until the 1990s when he transferred residence in Pampanga.

EDV