AUTHORITIES launched a hot pursuit operation against an unidentified gunman who shot and killed a 63-year-old hard-hitting radio broadcaster in Bislig City, Surigao del Sur, on Monday morning, July 21, 2025.
The victim, identified as Erwin Labitad Segovia, or popularly known as “Boy Pana,” served as the host of the radio program "Diritsahan!" of Radio WOW FM, whose topics revolved on local governance, community issues, and socio-political topics.
Initial police reports showed that Segovia had just ended his broadcast and was on his way home when he was followed by two unidentified assailants on a black motorcycle.
He was shot on the head along John Bosco Street, Barangay Mangagoy, Bislig City, Surigao del Sur.
"We are already activating the Special Investigation Task Group on New Cases to look into this tragic incident," Undersecretary Jose Torres Jr., executive director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFOMS), said in a statement on Monday.
He said his office is already coordinating with the Philippine National Police Media Vanguards and the Media-Citizen Council in Region 13 (Caraga Administrative Region) “to expedite the investigation. “
While Torres urged the public and the media community “to remain vigilant and to share any information that can aid in the investigation,” he also maintained that the incident “underscores the urgent need to strengthen the protection for journalists in the country.”
"The safety of journalists remains a priority for the government, and justice for victims of media-related violence continues to be a national concern," said Torres.
As this developed, a former mayor of another town of Surigao del Sur province came forward and offered a P1 million pesos bounty to those who can give any information that will lead to the identity and arrest of the gunmen of Segovia.
In her social media post on Monday, former Cantilan town Mayor Carla Lopez Pichay announced the reward money while challenging other local and current officials in the province to “ensure the swift capture” of Segovia’s killer.
On June 23 this year, a former radio broadcaster and transgender rights campaigner, Ali Macalintal, was also shot dead by still unknown suspects in General Santos City, some 341 kilometers away from Bislig City.
In February 2025, Reporters Without Borders said that Filipino radio journalists continue to risk their lives on a daily basis to do their job in one of the world’s most dangerous countries for media workers.
"Violence and intimidation are daily realities for radio journalists in the Philippines, who must constantly check if they are safe — even in their recording studios,” it said.
“The geographical dispersion of the archipelago’s islands has made radio a vital medium for disseminating information, particularly in remote areas. Yet this critical role comes at a high cost: according to RSF data, among the 147 journalists killed on the job since 1986, 89 were radio journalists,” the global media watchdog added. (Ronald Reyes/SunStar Philippines)