Samar execs forge alliance vs election violence

Samar officials have forged an alliance against election violence as they strongly condemned last week’s killing of their colleague, Daram Mayor Benito Astorga, the Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas (PDSP) said yesterday.

The local officials, who have just joined the administration-allied PDSP, said they are supporting President Arroyo’s call for the disbandment of private armies "since these are often used by politicians to physically exterminate their most bitter rivals or to antagonize other candidates or voters."

San Jorge Mayor Joseph Grey said it is possible that the New People’s Army (NPA) may be behind the assassination of Astorga since communist rebels offer their services to politicians. Samar is a known hotbed of communist insurgency.

The NPA reportedly owned up to the crime, saying Astorga was slain because of his anti-communist stance.

Fifty-five officials from nine towns in the first district of Western Samar led by Grey recently took their oath as new PDSP members. The inductees included four mayors, three vice mayors and councilors.

After their induction, the Samar officials came out with a united stand against the use of guns, goons and gold by some politicians.

Grey said the event, which he organized, was made more meaningful because of the officials’ united stand against political violence.

He called on all candidates and parties to help the authorities ensure that the May elections will be clean, peaceful, credible and orderly.

The officials urged police authorities to speed up the investigation into the Astorga slaying.

"Rebels or not, the killers of Mayor Astorga should be punished. All candidates and political parties should see to it that violence does not reign before, during and after the elections. Let us work together to end the bloodshed," Grey said.

The PDSP is headed by National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales. It belongs to the administration coalition led by the Lakas-Christian, Muslim Democrats.