'Peacebuilder' barangay exec killed in Cotabato ambush

COTABATO CITY — Gunmen killed a barangay official in an ambush on Saturday, November 9, in Kabacan, Cotabato. The official was known for his work promoting interfaith solidarity among Muslims, Christians, and Indigenous people in the province.

Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Mendoza and Kabacan Mayor Evangeline Guzman separately condemned on Monday, November 11, the fatal ambush of Ernesto Bigsang Sr., a barangay councilor in Cuyapon in Kabacan, while riding his mountain bike on his way to his farm in an interior area in the municipality.

Bigsang was known for his extensive participation in the activities of their municipal mayor complementing the national government’s peace overtures with Moro communities.

Brig. Gen. James Gulmatico, director of the Police Regional Office-12, told reporters on Monday that intelligence operatives of PRO-9 and the Cotabato Provincial Police Office are helping investigators in the Kabacan Municipal Police Station identify the killers of Bigsang for prosecution.

Witnesses had told investigators that the two pistol-wielding men who ambushed Bigsang managed to escape using a getaway motorcycle before responding community watchmen and barangay officials could reach the scene. 

Mendoza, who, as governor, is chairperson of the multi-sector Cotabato Provincial Peace and Order Council, and Guzman had separately offered an earnest cash incentive in exchange for any information leading to the arrest of the killers of Bigsang, who had also served as barangay chairman of Cuyapon for three consecutive terms.