MANILA, Philippines — Following the death of college sophomore Guillo Cesar Servando, President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday criticized the continuing practice of violent initiation rites among fraternities.
"To inflict such harm on people you will call brothers really escapes any logic that I can fathom," Aquino said in a televised interview with reporters at the sidelines of the Philippine Air Force anniversary rites in Pampanga.
The President also urged fraternity leaders to ensure that hazing will no longer be practised.
"I would like to call upon all the elders of these various fraternities," Aquino said. "Even if you had to undergo the same, isn't about time that you are the most active in making sure that it stops?"
Aquino said he will consult with legal and law enforcement experts to determine what more can be extensively done for the enforcement of the Anti-Hazing Law.
On Saturday, Servando was killed apparently in fraternity initiation rites that injured three other students of the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.
According to the STAR, an autopsy report of St. Harold Funeral Parlor said the 18-year-old hotel and restaurant management sophomore died of injuries in the back and legs.
The STAR report said police are now tracking down the suspects who are members of the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity (not Alpha Kappa Rho as initially reported).
Malacañang has condemned the incident and vowed to pursue all those responsible for Servando's death.
"We will definitely use the full force of the law to go after the hazing conspirators," Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said Monday.