Village councilor escapes assassination try

A barangay councilor has escaped the assassination attempt of gunmen in Camarines Sur on election day, an activist party-list group said on Tuesday.

Anakpawis party-list Vice Chairperson Fernandi Hicap said Redentor Alog, 41, a barangay councilor and member of the party-list chapter in Sitio Purikot, Barangay Mambulo Nuevo, Libmanan, Camarines Sur was about to cast his vote in a polling place when one of the five unidentified men riding in motorcycles shot him.

Hicap, quoting a report by the human rights watchdog Karapatan-Bicol, said Alog managed to run away from the gunmen.

"He ran for safety and sought refuge somewhere in forested area near the polling place. We are still checking his whereabouts and we want to make sure he is safe from his assailants," Hicap added.

He claimed that the slay-try on Alog was carried out by the military as part of its anti-insurgency program, Oplan Bayanihan.

"Definitely this is the handiwork of the military and part of the political killing campaign of activists under Oplan Bayanihan counter-insurgency program of the Aquino administration," Hicap said.

He was saddened that the military has used the election season to conduct surveillance and pursue political assassination of activists highly critical of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

"Prior to the assassination attempt, intelligence members of the AFP in Bicol had been frequenting Alog's area and were asking residents about the whereabouts of the 41-year-old member of Anakpawis. One of those who were asked about Alog was his young child who failed to inform his father that a group of military looking men were hunting him," said Hicap.

Earlier, one of the staff of Anakpawis received a text from cellphone no: 09208973218 which carried the message "Wag Iboto ang mga Komunistang Party List gaya ng Bayan Muna, Anakpawis,Gabriela, Kalikasan, Kabataan, ACT Teachers at Akap Bata. Please pass..."