Malabon cops nix politics in slay of re-electionist village executive

MANILA, Philippines - The Malabon City police ruled out yesterday politics as the possible motive in the killing Sunday of a local re-electionist village executive.

Superintendent Reynaldo Orante, Malabon City police acting chief, said that “politics is remote” among the three grounds being looked into in the murder of Maximo Bernardo, 56, chairman of Barangay Concepcion.

“Nobody among the three other aspirants could be considered as a hostile rival of Barnardo and even his kin doesn’t imply politics as the possible motive behind the slaying,” Orante told The STAR.

Michael Santiago, a former barangay chairman, Romancito Santos, an incumbent barangay councilman, and Orlando Vivero, a retired policeman are also running as chairman of Barangay Concepcion in the coming Oct. 25 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan polls. 

The Northern Police District earlier said that their investigation is focused on at least three grounds — politics, personal or business-related. Orante, however, would not point out which between the remaining two, personal or business-related, is the most possible ground in Bernardo’s killing. He confirmed that the suspects were hired assassins and “professional and expert” as they killed Bernardo with only a single bullet.

Bernardo, who was seeking a third and last term, was walking home along Paez street from a church when he was shot in the head by a gunman who escaped on board a motorcycle driven by another suspect at around 7:15 a.m.

The NPD intelligence division and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group are conducting parallel investigation in the murder of Bernardo, an elected government official. They are silent on the local police pronouncement.

The NPD, led by Senior Superintendent Edgardo Ladao and the Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela police will hold today a simultaneous “Run for Hope” (Honest, Orderly, Peaceful, Election).

The Malabon City police, with the local Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting, the Commission on Elections, and the Department of Education, would also be sponsoring a peace covenant signing today among the candidates for the city’s 21 barangays.