ILOILO City – Winning candidates are urged not to insult losers, which might be a reason for them to retaliate.
“Those who won, do not taunt the losers,” Brigadier General Sidney Villaflor, Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) director, said.
Villaflor said those who lost in the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections may still have hurt feelings for not winning the race.
As of Tuesday, Oct. 31, the PRO-6 has recorded two additional cases of suspected election-related incidents – a shooting where the target was a reelected barangay captain in Iloilo and unjust vexation involving candidates in Capiz.
The shooting incident victimized reelected Punong Barangay Renato Libuna of Pajo, Lambunao, Iloilo.
Libuna, his wife Jona, and six other passengers were onboard a sport utility vehicle when they were shot at around 10:50 p.m. on Oct. 30.
Police investigators counted seven bullet holes in Libuna’s vehicle.
A single slug of what was believed to be from a .45 pistol was recovered. It will be subjected to a ballistics examination.
Libuna and the other passengers claimed to have witnessed gunfire from Dioscoro Lozada, who was also a candidate for barangay captain.
Lozada’s whereabouts were unknown as of this writing. Police said a hot pursuit operation was launched.
“We have no previous record involving any of the parties, so possibly it has something to do with their running in the elections. The incident happened after the counting of votes, and the winners have been proclaimed,” said Major Jojean Suegay, chief of the Lambunao police station.
Iloilo Police Provincial Office spokesperson Major Rolando Araño confirmed in a radio interview that the strafing was election-related but an isolated incident. (PNA)/PN
