Stop peddling lies, Malayao kin tell cops

SAN PABLO, Isabela — Relatives and supporters of slain National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) consultant Randy Felix Malayao will hold a people’s march on Wednesday, a day before his burial here.

But a week after Malayao was gunned down inside a bus in Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya, on Jan. 30, his family assailed the police for what it described as “lack of clear investigation” of the attack as they had yet to identify the gunman or the mastermind.

His sister, Perla Urpano, said the police had yet to release the closed-circuit television footage and dash camera recordings in the crime scene as well as Malayao’s laptop and mobile phone.

“We will cooperate but please do not pressure us because we are still grieving,” she also said, addressing the investigators.

Innocent

Urpano said she was enraged by police and military allegations that Malayao had a rift with communist rebels.

In a statement, the Cagayan Valley police described Malayao as an “alleged financial and sexual opportunist in the revolution.” The statement, uploaded on the official website of the regional police, said such tags could have been reasons the rebels decided to kill Malayao.

“Randy was well respected and yet they are making yarn of lies to besmirch him even when he is already dead,” Urpano told the Inquirer.

She said her brother had a “noble principle to be honest and we believed he was innocent of the allegations.”

“We want to preserve our integrity and I believe that he left a good mark on many people,” she added.

Another sister, Rosalinda, said they wanted a speedy investigation with the identification and arrest of the gunman and the mastermind.

“We had been surprised with the outpouring of sympathy. Those who visited the wake were people who had been touched by his kindness,” she said. —Villamor Visaya Jr.