VP Duterte urges PNP to tackle gun violence after Ateneo shooting
Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte during an ambush interview. (Image from Facebook/DepEd)
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte and former Vice President Leni Robredo condemned on Sunday the fatal shooting of former Mayor Rose Furigay of Lamitan, Basilan, and two others at the Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City.
Issuing their own statements, Duterte and Robredo offered their prayers and expressed condolences to the families of those killed.
Such violence, Duterte said, “should have no place in our society… especially in a place of learning — which is supposed to be considered a safe space for everyone, for the students mainly.
Duterte, who is also the secretary of the Department of Education, added: “The Philippine National Police is also strongly urged to address gun violence in the country — and consistent operations against illegal firearms could be one of the effective measures to do this.”
Robredo said she was “shocked” by the attack.
“That this happened in broad daylight, at an occasion which marks the culmination of the many years of hard work of the graduating law students … makes the incident more tragic,” the former vice president said.
“It reminds us to keep on pushing back on everything that promotes a culture of impunity,” she added.
Robredo also noted that the slain mayor and her husband, Roderick Furigay, were strong supporters of our Angat Buhay program in Lamitan.
Also killed were Victor George Capistrano, who was the executive assistant of the slain mayor, and one of the Ateneo security guards whose name had not yet been determined, according to the National Capital Region Police Office.
The suspect, Chao Tiao Yumol, a 38-year-old general practice physician, managed to sneak guns inside the Ateneo campus, despite a gun ban imposed in Metro Manila in preparation for the first state of the nation address of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
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