Binay asks PNP to stop violence in Bulacan village league polls

BALIWAG, Bulacan—Tension gripped this Bulacan town following the eruption of violence involving candidates in the village league elections scheduled for Monday.

Vice President Jejomar Binay, whose help was sought by one of the candidates, asked police to take steps to avert the escalation of violence.

Former Board Member Ferdinand Estrella, chair of Barangay Poblacion in Baliwag town, urged police to protect candidates for president in the Liga ng mga Barangay elections on Monday because of alleged political harassment, as the vehicle of Rosita Garcia, village chief of Barangay Barangka, was shot at by gunmen at dawn on Wednesday.

Estrella, who is running for president of the league, had identified Garcia as one of his supporters.

“I urge police to immediately look into these reports and take the proper measures to stop these acts. The persons responsible should be made to pay for their crimes,” Binay said in the statement.

Estrella accused the husband of a Baliwag politician for threatening another supporter.

Estrella ran for mayor against incumbent Mayor Caroline Dellosa in the midterm elections last May. He lost the race but won in the recent village elections.

Senior Supt. Joel Orduña, Bulacan police director, said police had tightened security for Monday’s league elections, which would be participated in by village officials from the 21 towns and three cities of Bulacan.

The Philippine National Police is under the supervision of Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, who is a known political enemy of Binay and a top official of the ruling Liberal Party. Carmela Reyes Estrope, Inquirer Central Luzon