RONDA, Cebu Mayor Mariano Blanco III thought he was safe in the town hall, the seat of the local government, where a few meters away are stationed its police force. He was gunned down Wednesday dawn (Sept. 5). Four men went into the “munisipyo,” climbed the stairs into his office, and pumped bullets into his body.
Daanbantayan Mayor Vic Loot has shunned the municipal building and stays in his house and other locations. He was still alive, as of this writing.
Those who chide Blanco for not having stayed away from the town hall miss the fact that no politician targeted by a killer or killers would be entirely safe. Or any other would-be victim for that matter, especially if the suspected assassins could be the police themselves.
All that Loot is doing is making it tougher for his assassins to get him.
Both in ‘narco’ list
What Loot and Blanco had in common, aside from being elective officials, was that they were listed and publicly named-and-shamed by President Duterte as drug lord coddlers and/or drug traffickers.
How did the two mayors differ? Loot was trained in the skill of tracking down wanted persons and dodging hostile attack. He also has a network of friends and “assets” within and outside PNP.
Not a sanctuary
Blanco apparently thought that the government building offered a sanctuary. The “munisipyo” is after all the symbol of authority, guarded by its police, where an assault is most unlikely unless staged by rebels out to embarrass the state.
Well, he was proved wrong. The kill was quick and easy and the killers got away, with not a shot fired by the police on duty.
Deep and wide
That shows how wide and deep the culture of impunity has spread. Impunity, still an intimidating word to many of us, tells killers they can kill and not be prosecuted and liable for it. Look at the list of EJKs, euphemistically called DUIs because they’re not being seriously investigated.
And impunity means they can strike anywhere.
Four mayors before Blanco were killed in other parts of the country, with most of them showing vulnerability of places one thought were safe: one’s home, a flag ceremony, a jail, a government office.
Loot and his family were shot at last May 13 at the Daanbantayan wharf, sparing him but wounding his driver. his nanny and a porter, He must have have realized then that if one’s location was known, he could be attacked there.
Absentee mayor
OK, the mayor can hide anywhere he wants to. Despite the requirement of Local Government Code that he must hold office in the municipal building, a targeted mayor has the right to find ways to survive.
But Loot is clinging to his seat without literally occupying it. That’s not part of his contract with the voters, which requires quick and easy access to their mayor.
If Loot doesn’t want to resign, he can take a leave of absence; he has a vice mayor, or the No. 1 councilor, to do the job full-time. Consider the well-being of constituents and the town’s welfare, which his physical absence doesn’t promote.
In this odd and troubled time, lives are snuffed out, rule of law teeters on the edge, and public service is eroded.