MAMANG PULIS — SOLVING mediamen’s killings will remain the priority of the Philippine National Police.
Task Force Usig chief Director Raul M. Bacalzo warned PNP officers they face stiff sanctions including dismissal from the service if they will fail to attend court hearings including those involving slain members of the media.
“We all have to appear in court. Our chief, Gen. (Jesus) Verzosa had made court appearance a priority. And we give maximum punishment to anybody who does not follow court order. It’s a grave offense punishable by dismissal from the service, not only suspension,†Bacalzo said.
The PNP’s Task Force Usig is handling the case of Surigao del Sur radio broadcaster Godofredo Linao, Jr. who was shot dead last week.
The Regional Task Force Usig of the Police Regional Office 13 under Chief Supt. Jaime E. Milla, Jr. had filed murder charges against two men involved in the attack. Linao was a staffer of 94.5 Magic Love FM Radio.
Milla said the case filed against an alias ‘‘Doy’’ and a John Doe was filed on the strength of the testimonies of two witnesses who heard the gunman tell the lookout ‘‘Doy tan a (Doy, let’s go)’’ before fleeing the crime scene.
Milla earlier appealed to other witnesses to come out and help them identify the killers. “We assure them that their identities will be kept in utmost secrecy and that they will be under our full protection,†he said.
Bacalzo said stinging commentaries from hard-hitting journalists are the main reason why they are targeted for assassination.
“There are the work-related killings wherein the victims were ordered killed by persons affected by their unfavorable remarks,†he said. “But there is really no pattern here. It just happened that the victims are hard-hitting media personalities who are known for exposing anomalies and other irregularities in their areas,†Bacalzo said.
Records showed that of the 30 work-related killings of journalists since 2001, five are considered “cold cases†or those that have not prospered for more than a year for several reasons.
