Marcos orders DILG, PNP to dismantle private armies

MANILA — President Marcos yesterday described as “shocking” and “purely political” the assassination of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo as he ordered authorities to identify “hot spots” and to conduct a crackdown on private armies and illegal firearms.

Speaking to reporters at Malacañang, Marcos said the killing of Degamo is “entirely unacceptable” and “cannot go unpunished.”

“It was shocking. I couldn’t believe that this would still happen. They (killers) entered his house. When you see the video, you would see that they shot those who were facing them,” the President said in Filipino.

“This one is particularly terrifying… This does not belong in our society. This should not be tolerated so we won’t let this pass,” he added.

Marcos expressed belief that unlike some of the recent attacks against local officials, the killing of Degamo was politically motivated. “This is purely political,” he said.

“That’s why we are looking (for) and getting all the best intelligence we can (get) from our people on the ground to tell us… the places we should be looking at, where do we need more people, where do we need more personnel, who are the personalities involved, et cetera, all of these things.”

The assassination of Degamo is the latest violent incident targeting local officials.

On Feb. 17, Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong Jr. was injured and four of his aides were killed in an ambush in Maguing town. Two days later, Aparri, Cagayan vice mayor Rommel Alameda and five others died in an ambush in Bagabag, Nueva Vizcaya. On Feb. 22, Mayor Ohto Caumbo Montawal of Datu Montawal, Maguindanao del Sur was wounded in an ambush in Pasay City.

Marcos said he has asked Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos and the Philippine National Police to make an “examination” and determine “hot spots,” similar to what they are doing during election season. He also emphasized the need to seize illegal firearms and to dismantle private armies.

“Don’t think of the election first. But think of the hot spot, the areas we need to monitor,” the Chief Executive said.

“The usual thing that should be done is to look for illegal firearms. If there are few illegal firearms, such kinds of crimes would be few. All the private armies should be dismantled,” he added.

Marcos said the investigation into Degamo’s killing is progressing well as investigators have collected a lot of information and authorities have arrested suspects. Authorities are also conducting hot pursuit and dragnet operations to catch the perpetrators of the crime, he added.

President Marcos also directed the military and the police to increase their presence across the country.

“So, I’ve asked our joint – army and the police, I suggest keep your presence known, felt, to prevent lawlessness,” Marcos said partly in Filipino.

The President also said the government is ready to provide security to “everybody who feels aggrieved.”

“I think right now, we are giving protection to everybody. We don’t have details yet. But whoever feels aggrieved or whatever. Of course… the emotions are running high now,” he said.

Target practice

Several senators, meanwhile, took up target practice over the weekend and beefed up their security following the spate of deadly attacks against local officials in the past months, Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva said yesterday.

Villanueva made the disclosure as the Senate adopted two resolutions—one expressing the sympathy and condolences of the chamber to the family of Degamo, and another condemning the spate of killings of government officials.

“It’s imperative for leaders like us to double check our security. Of course, that (assassinations) is a serious concern, my children are still young. But it’s only us, as a whole, as a nation, we have to look at it as a big concern,” Villanueva told reporters.

He cited 2023 Social Weather Stations Survey released last Feb. 7 showing 60 percent are “afraid that robbers might break into their houses” and 50 percent are “afraid to walk the streets at night because it is not safe.”

Six or seven senators—some on their own—practiced their shooting skills but Villanueva, who also did some target practice, declined to name them.

Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, a former PNP chief, has been acting as the “in-house security chief” of senators and is conducting an evaluation of individual senators’ security procedures, he said.

“We are all up for the job. We are all up for ensuring we will do our part in rejecting this so-called fear these rascals are trying to inject… we’ve not canceled any schedules but definitely tightened our security,” Villanueva said.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said Degamo’s assassination came after a string of attacks against incumbent and former officials.

“But we cannot afford to be desensitized to incidents like these. We cannot accept these attacks as a normal part of our culture. We cannot let violence like this terrorize our people, and force us all to live in fear,” Zubiri said in sponsoring the resolutions.

“Worse yet are the deaths of innocent civilians, who have nothing at all to do with whatever motivations are behind these assassinations. To target government officials is dastardly, but to involve hapless civilians is downright evil. We can even consider this ambush to be an act of terrorism,” he said.

Sen. Cynthia Villar also extolled Degamo’s performance as governor, adding the victim once confided to her the death threats he had been receiving.

“He was a stalwart of the Nacionalista Party in Negros Oriental and a true friend of my family. We have discussed the danger on his life he is facing every day and it finally came about. I even asked a fellow senator when he was having problem with his security years ago,” Villar said.

Sen. Bong Revilla warned the masterminds of the killings that their “great day of reckoning is coming.”

“While we join you in your anguish, we likewise rally behind you in your quest for justice,” Revilla said.

Dela Rosa said the PNP was expected to rise above and take control of the situation, and re-establish law and order. “The impunity and brutality instilled horror, anxiety, and panic among our people. This poses an enormous challenge to our law enforcement authorities, particularly the PNP.”

Sen. Pia Cayetano cited Degamo’s support for initiatives on sports for peace and development.

War vs gun-for-hires

Sen. Francis Escudero called on the government to pursue an all-out war against gun-for-hire syndicates “with the full might of intelligence funds.”

“Only the identification and dismantling of groups of hired killers can assassinations be stopped,” Escudero said.

He said the brutal killing of the governor “is among the many signs that paid killings is becoming a cottage industry in the Philippines.”

Escudero proposed that the P5.22 billion intelligence funds be distributed across several agencies and “should be tapped in creating an actionable database of these killers.”

“And if these perpetrators have pending warrants of arrest and they are armed and dangerous, then that listing could be an order of battle,” he said.

The Senate is also expected to conduct an inquiry into the assassinations. The probe was prompted by the adopted resolution and the one filed by Sen. Risa Hontiveros.

Hontiveros said this was “not the first time” she called for an investigation on killings in Negros Oriental. In 2019, a weeklong killing spree in Negros Oriental, called Oplan Sauron, saw the death of lawyer Anthony Trinidad and several other civilians.

“We should be horrified by the frequency of political assassinations. The Comelec is no longer the arbiter, but the trigger. Historical and worsening violence is corrupting our nation, in once peaceful places like Negros Oriental,” she said.