Mark Jimenez’s supporters getting death threats

Some 12 barangay leaders in the sixth district of Manila, together with their constituents, trooped to the Western Police District (WPD) yesterday to seek police protection for alleged threats on their lives.

The worried officials claimed they started to get death threats through letters and streamers days before the elections and continued to receive threatening phone calls thereafter.

The complaining barangay leaders are former followers of defeated congressional candidate Pablo Ocampo who have shifted their support to Congressman-elect Mark Jimenez during the campaign period.

Carlos Castañeda, head of the district’s Association of Barangay Chairmen (ABC), and Lilia Burgos showed police two streamers written with the words: "Babala sa mukhang perang chairman. Kapag hindi ka tumigil sa maling sistema sa darating na halalan hahatulan ka namin ng kamatayan (Warning to moneyed-faced chairman. If you don’t mend your ways in the coming election we will sentence you with death)." The warnings were merely signed "liquidation unit," without specifying what organization the "unit" belongs.

Castañeda said the streamer was placed in front of the barangay hall by unknown persons, while Burgos received the streamer in her residence.

Castañeda said that supporters of businessman and philantrophist Jimenez received letters allegedly from the Alex Boncayao Brigades (ABB) which threatened them with death if they continued backing Jimenez’s campaign. The letters were in envelopes containing black ribbons and other ominous symbols designed to intimidate the recipients.

However, Castañeda and the other barangay captains believed the letters were not from the ABB, since it was not the style of the communist hit squad to issue multiple death threats to barangay officials, and merely because they were backing a congressional candidate. – Nestor Etolle