MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Tuesday said that the government takes the murder of veteran broadcaster Percy Lapid seriously and will use the resources of the Philippine National Police (PNP) to seek justice for Lapid.
Lapid, whose real name is Percival Mabasa, was gunned down near his home in Talon Dos, Las Piñas on Monday night by an unidentified assailant onboard a motorcycle.
READ: Radio commentator Percy Lapid shot dead in ambush
“We guarantee the Lapid family that the government does not turn a blind eye to this heinous act,” the DILG said in a statement.
The Las Piñas City Police has formed a special investigative task group, which the department noted has already begun an in-depth probe.
“The DILG and PNP commit to deliver justice to the family of Lapid and bring the suspects behind bars to answer for their crime,” it added.
READ: PNP vows to bring justice for slain Percy Lapid; says probe underway
The DILG also reaffirmed its commitment to “protecting the Filipino people towards a more peaceful and orderly Philippines.”
It also mentioned “hard-working media practitioners across the country, who have been partners of the government in information dissemination and most importantly, in serving as watchdogs for the benefit of the public.”
The department then extended its condolences to Lapid’s bereaved kin, assuring them that it would work with the PNP to resolve this case.
READ: Percy Lapid’s kin: ‘We demand that his cowardly assassins be brought to justice’
A vocal critic of the Duterte and Marcos administrations, Lapid hosted a radio news commentary show called Lapid Fire on DWBL 1242.
According to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, he was the second journalist to have been killed under the Marcos administration.
The first was the Sept. 18, 2022 stabbing murder of radio host Rey Blanco in Negros Oriental.
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