Mayor in Leyte renounces killings of barangay officials

A member of Scene of the Crime Operatives marks the area where police officers gunned down a murder suspect in Leyte. (File photo by ROBERT DEJON / Inquirer Visayas)

TACLOBAN CITY – A municipal mayor in Leyte criticized the spate of killings involving barangay officials.

This move comes as police investigators have yet to determine the identities and motives of the assailants.

Mayor Remedio Veloso of San Isidro town said his people should stand united to fight against the “bestiality and brutality” done by the killers.

“It is certain that the perpetrators of these coward and callous acts want to sow seeds of terror and intend to instill fear in our hearts,” he said in a statement.

“But in the face of such brutality and violent actions, we should never be paralyzed by fear,” Veloso noted.

Barangay Daja Diot chairman Elizalde Tabon, 55, was gunned down while inside their barangay hall at about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Also killed in the same gun attack were councilman Paolo Al Mendero, 52, and barangay tanod (watchman) Rusty Salazar.

Another tanod, Alex Bacor, sustained injuries.

Leyte police director Colonel Erwin Portillo said they are investigating the cases.

“This incident is currently under investigation, and we have deployed additional resources and manpower to expedite the process,” he said.

He also urged the public to stop making speculations and their own conclusions as police are still conducting their probe.

Leyte Representative Anna Veloso Tuazon, whose congressional district covers the town of San Isidro, issued a statement on the shooting.

“We condemn the impunity and violence with which these murders were carried out, as well as the alarming spike in killings and assassinations we have seen in recent months in San Isidro, Leyte, Tabango, Villaba, and Calubian,” she said.

These events “create a chilling effect among our citizenry, and have no place in a society that values life, dignity, the peaceful resolution of disputes, and adherence to the rule of law,” she added.

Several gun assaults have occurred in Leyte’s third district in the past months.

On February 20, a barangay councilor in Tabango town was shot dead by perpetrators.

All these cases remain unsolved.