Malacanang on Tuesday denounced the murder of Loreto Mayor
Dario Otaza and his son, Daryl, by suspected members of the New People's Army
(NPA).
Initial investigation showed that the Otazas were seized by
about 18 gunmen wearing National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) uniform from the
family's residence in the village of Baan , Butuan
City
In a briefing, Presidential Communications Operations Office
(PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said bodies of the father and son were
found hog-tied with multiple gunshot wounds at around 7am Tuesday in Purok 2,
Barangay Bitan-agan, Butuan
City
He said the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed
Forces have intensified their operations to run after the Otazas' killers.
"We condemn in the strongest possible terms this
cowardly act. We hope that Mayor Otaza's death unites the people of Agusan del
Sur, the Manobos and the entire Lumad community, and every decent Filipino in
working sincerely towards lasting, meaningful peace," he added.
During the briefing, Undersecretary Manny Bautista of the
Cabinet Cluster on Security, Justice, and Peace said they have not determined
the identity of the suspects but the methodology used points to the NPA due to
the presence of a big group of armed men who aim to intimidate the victim and
to kill.
He said Mayor Otaza, who is a member of the indigenous group
Lumad and a former NPA member, had bodyguards but they put their guards down a
bit when the gunmen arrived because the latter were wearing NBI uniforms.
"He (Mayor Otaza) have received death threats. We are
saying the perpetrators are likely members of the NPA until we get evidences
but indicators point to the NPA," he said.
Bautista said it is not impossible that the NPAs want Otaza
dead because the latter has been a strong partner of the government in making
NPA members surrender and become part of the main society again.
Some 154 NPA members turned against the group in the recent
Serbisyong Caravan through the help of Otaza but Bautista disclosed that even
before that the Mayor was instrumental in the surrender of more than 250 NPA
members.
"Definitely it's a big blow to the organization,"
he said.
Bautista said the government is always open and sincere for
the resumption of peace talks with the rebel group.
"Government is always open to resumption of peace
talks. What government is against is the setting of preconditions for these
talks to resume. But government is sincere in resuming the peace talks whenever
they are ready and we have always communicated that," he stressed.
Bautista, thus, urged the NPA to spare the Lumads, who are
now in the center of the issue due partly to the issue of ancestral domain,
which the rebel group is said to be taking advantage of.
"We appeal to the CPP-NPA (Communist Party of the
Philippines-New Peoples Army) to spare the Lumads...We appeal to the NPA to end
the armed struggle," Bautista said.
Asked for reaction on the allegation that the military might
be behind Otaza's death, Bautista said "the Armed Forces is always open to
investigation."
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=817288
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