Lamitan grieves for slain ex-mayor

PAYING RESPECTS The Philippine flag at the City Hall of Lamitan in Basilan province is flown at half-staff on Monday to mourn the death of former Mayor Rose Furigay, who was shot and killed by a longtime critic on Sunday. —JULIE S. ALIPALA

LAMITAN CITY, Basilan, Philippines — A day after former Lamitan City Mayor Rose Furigay was shot dead on the Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) campus in Quezon City on Sunday afternoon, the Philippine flag was being flown at half-staff at the City Hall complex as teary-eyed employees consoled each other.

At a tennis center named after Furigay and her husband Roderick, who is the incumbent city mayor, flower offerings kept on arriving while special Masses were being offered in several chapels.

Friends, both Christians and Muslims, were busy organizing a vigil and candle lighting at City Hall set to start on Monday night. Outside, people were saying they had lost a mayor who was always accessible to her constituents.

Those who knew both Furigay and the gunman, Dr. Chao Tiao Yumol, were shocked at the ruthlessness of the attack that also killed her executive assistant, Victor Capistrano, and Ateneo security guard Jeneven Bandiala.

Dr. Arlyn Jawad Jumao-as, executive director of Save the Children (Basilan), said she could not believe that Yumol, a colleague whom she personally knew, was capable of such an act.

“It was a ruthless killing, totally unacceptable. It’s too painful for us, the people of Lamitan, we really feel the pain,” she told the Inquirer.

Jumao-as said that in Furigay’s nine years as mayor, Lamitan had made a lot of progress.

“We don’t understand why Chao did it. We don’t know how to move on. The entire city is in mourning,” she added.

3 fatal wounds

Furigay, who was at AdMU to attend her daughter Hannah Rose’s graduation from law school, suffered three fatal gunshot wounds, according to the family’s legal counsel, Quirino Esguerra. She was hit twice in the chest and once in the head.

A bullet also grazed Hannah Rose’s left eye, her kidney and abdomen. She has since been declared in stable condition at a hospital, Esguerra said.

He added that they had already completed the required COVID-19 health protocols for the bodies of Furigay and Capistrano. A short wake would be held in a Quezon City chapel before their remains were to be taken to Lamitan for burial.

Esguerra said they were filing multiple murder and frustrated murder charges against the gunman.

As of Monday night, the Quezon City police had yet to inquest Yumol who was arrested after a brief chase. He told the police that he killed Furigay for her alleged involvement in the drug trade in Basilan province.

According to sources, Yumol’s father, Rolando, was a retired Philippine Constabulary officer and a native of Lamitan, who married Muy Kim, a native of Tapul, Sulu. When journalists tried to get her side on Monday, Muy Kim turned them away.

“We were shocked when we learned that Chao was behind the murder of three persons, including Mayor Rose,” said Victoria Siason, a retired teacher and member of the Office of Senior Citizens in Lamitan.

“We are aware that Chao has some issues against the LGU (local government unit). He was operating a clinic [for antirabies vaccination] without any license… It was not the LGU but the [Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao] at that time [that] declared his operation [illegal],” she added.

Claims denied

According to Siason, Yumol got mad at the Furigays and accused them of being drug lords. “The couple is not involved in drugs. We can vouch for their record. They even abhor smokers here. You are forbidden to smoke in Lamitan. So, how could Yumol accuse someone (like them of being involved in drugs)?” she said.

For Rajan Flores Abdurakman, deputy commander of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF) 114 Base Command in Basilan, Furigay never discriminated against anyone, despite being a Christian.

“Even in those days when we were still discussing the peace process, she would visit us without any security. She never did wrong to our people and it pains us to see someone supportive of the peace process and the MILF gruesomely killed in Manila. We were not able to sleep since last night and we are demanding justice for Mayor Rose,” he said.

Senators also condemned the Ateneo shooting as they called on authorities to prosecute the gunman.

Commission on Higher Education Chair Prospero de Vera III described the school shooting as “horrific,” and said he personally knew Furigay and her husband who received him “with open arms” during his visits to Lamitan.

“This incident also highlights the importance of keeping our campuses safe and secure as places of learning, inclusivity and peace,” he said in a statement.

—WITH REPORTS FROM MARLON RAMOS AND JANE BAUTISTA

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