Teduray leader slain in Maguindanao del Sur

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

COTABATO CITY — A Teduray leader, who is also a village councilman in Barangay Bongo, South Upi in Maguindanao del Sur was killed on Tuesday night.

Leticio Datuwata, the supreme tribal chieftain of Timuay Justice and Governance (TJG), identified the victim as Elvin Moires.

“He is on his way back home after attending a tribal wedding ceremony when shot by unidentified men,” Datuwata told the Inquirer.

A report said he suffered several gunshot wounds.

Moires was rushed to a local hospital but was declared dead on arrival by the attending doctors.

For Datuwata, Moires is known for being a vocal “lumad” leader, especially on the rights of indigenous people in South Upi.

“This is very alarming once again for the IP. In August, the vice mayor of South Upi was ambushed, while in May, a village councilman was also gunned down in Datu Hoffer,” Datuwata said.

Datuwata was referring to the case of South Upi Vice Mayor Roldan Benito, in which three persons of interest had been identified by the Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) Benito. The murder case of village councilman Juanito Promboy in Datu Hoffer remained unsolved.

“Since 2018, the TJG has recorded a high number of killings among tribal communities of non-Moro IP in Maguindanao and Bangsamoro Region,” Datuwata said.

According to Datuwata, their latest count was 75.