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Thursday, March 18, 2004
Mayor's son 'dares' Abra guv to a gun duel
By Harley F. Palangchao
BAGUIO CITY -- The son of a lady mayor in Abra allegedly challenged Abra Gov. Vicente Valera to a duel inside a cockpit arena in the capital town of Bangued Tuesday afternoon, reports said.
Ironically, Ryan Luna, son of Mayor Cecilia Luna of Lagayan town, made the challenge against Valera in front of Supt. Arturo Hicban, director of the Abra Provincial Police Office, sources added.
Luna reportedly approached and confronted Valera for publicly declaring that the Lunas, and not the Valeras, are behind the spate of shooting incidents resulting to multiple deaths in the province.
The governor, however, remained cool while being interrogated and challenged to a duel.
The escalating tension cooled down when armed bodyguards of the Lunas and a score of policemen responded to the cockpit arena. Valera, Hicban and policemen reportedly left the cockpit arena while hundreds of cockfight aficionados could not still believe what has happened.
Sources said the political rivalry between the Lunas and the Valeras worsened when Roger Luna, Ryan's father, filed his candidacy for governor and is facing Valera in the May 10 elections.
Abra has been identified as a special concern of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) following a series of killings since the start of this year.
The entire Abra province was placed under Comelec control in the 2001 elections with all gun ban exemptions issued to politicians subsequently revoked.
Last Tuesday, Cordillera Police Director Rowland Albano also launched a cash reward scheme of P20,000 to any person who can pinpoint to authorities loose gun holders in Abra.
The launching of a reward system came after police theorized that owners of loose firearms could be behind a series of shooting victimizing barangay officials.
He said three of the 10 murders recorded late last year were politically-motivated. The latest victim of the so-called political persecution was Councilman Priscillo Billedo of Barangay Banacao in the capital town of Bangued.
Last year, police authorities arrested Tineg Mayor Edwin Crisologo Sr. allegedly for keeping illegal firearms.
Seized from the mayor's boarding house were two riffle grenade launchers, an M-16 riffle and a home made revolver, reports added.
Crisologo took over former Tineg Mayor Clarence Benwaren who was gunned down pointblank inside a church in Calauan, Laguna on October 29 last year.
Reports reaching Baguio reporters revealed that an M-16 riffle was confiscated from one of the close-in bodyguards of Lagayan Mayor Cecile Luna Thursday.
Luna, together with three other Abra mayors, were reported earlier to have been well guarded by armed police security guards amid reports of threats on their lives.
The arrest of the two Abra mayors and other search warrants against local officials came following a series of reported crimes against person like murder, frustrated murder, homicide and attempted homicide.
Court records showed that since October 2001 up to July this year there were 31 recorded murder cases, 21 frustrated murders and eight attempted murder charges were already filed.
There were also at least seven homicides, 13 frustrated homicides and seven attempted homicide charges lodged against various courts in the province.
An Abra mayor, who furnished these court documents, claimed that most of the cases filed were perceived to be politically motivated.
(March 18, 2004 issue)
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