|
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Mayoral bet, son killed in Malita
By Nilo Cobrado and Rex C. Otero
DAVAO CITY -- A mayoral candidate in Malita, Davao del Sur and his son were shot dead Wednesday afternoon by still unidentified armed men over copies of election returns.
Jaime Chin, a congressional candidate in the second district of Davao del Sur, identified the victim as Isidro Sarmiento, mayoralty candidate in Malita under Lakas CMD-Kampi, and his son Danilo.
Pinoy Votes: Sun.Star Election 2007 Coverage
The elder Sarmiento was trailing behind incumbent Governor Benjamin Joseph Bautista, who is on his last term as governor and is running for town mayor.
The Sarmientos were shot at around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon.
Chin, in a phone interview on Wednesday, said they do not have the complete details of the incident but that it stemmed from election returns.
"I was just informed by our lawyer and I don't know yet the exact details. Tinatawagan ko nga ang ating mga PNP (Philippine National Police) officials pero hindi pa sila sumasagot even the provincial director (I even called our police officials but they have not answered yet)," Chin said.
Based on initial investigation, the two Sarmientos were at their house at around 3:30 p.m. when the armed men arrived and demanded that the copies of elections returns in the possession of the mayoral bet be handed to them.
"Siguro alam mo na (Perhaps you know now) and I think your guess is as good as mine," Chin said when asked if he suspected anyone of being beind the shooting.
Sarmiento, who was former Provincial Board member, was running against Bautista.
A GMA 7 report said the younger Sarmiento, prior the incident, had reportedly complained over local media about the dirty tactics employed by their poll rival Bautista.
Information coming in late afternoon from the camp of the Bautistas, however, admitted it was one of the bodyguards of Representative Claude Bautista, Benjamin's brother, who shot the Sarmientos.
Claude, who is also on his last term as congressman, is running for governor in place of Benjamin. The governor, who is on his last term, is seeking the mayoral seat in Malita.
"It (the shooting) was in defense of the congressman, who was first shot at and without any provocation," Benjamin said.
Malita is a first-class municipality in Davao del Sur. Latest government figures show Malita has a population of 100,000 people in 20,526 households. (Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. (May 17, 2007 issue)
Write letter to the editor. Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board. Click here. |
|
|
|
[return to top]
[home]
|
|
12 ballot boxes snatched, found in river