Police said that on Saturday, armed men dressed in military uniforms assaulted and killed a province governor in the central Philippines. The investigation led to the arrest of three people many hours later.
Roel Degamo Dies:
It was not immediately obvious what motivated the latest in a string of assassinations of senior figures. According to preliminary police accounts, the governor, Roel Degamo, was at home in the Negros Oriental town of Pamplona when the incident occurred.
Other attendees numbering at least five were also taken out. Those who had been meeting with Mr. Degamo to apply for assistance from the governor’s welfare programme were mentioned.
The President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., has demanded a prompt inquiry and assured that the murderers will be brought to justice.
Those responsible for “this diabolical and atrocious act” will be brought to justice, Mr. Marcos vowed in a statement, and his administration would not rest until that happens. A warning to those responsible for this murder: “You can flee, but you cannot hide.”
Three guys were reported apprehended by police hours later in connection with the incident. They were all in their forties or fifties, and two of them were supposedly ex-military. A.45 calibre pistol and ammo were reportedly confiscated by the police as well.
Source: TRT World
Before the arrests, police announced in a statement that the suspects had carried out the “treacherous attack” while dressed in camouflage clothes and with bulletproof vests and long weapons.
The 56-year-old Mr. Degamo belonged to a political family and worked closely with Mr. Marcos. In May 2022, Mr. Degamo was declared the loser in an election he had no chance of winning. Pryde Henry Teves, his disqualified opponent, temporarily served as governor before stepping down for Mr. Degamo.
Sara Duterte, the vice president, shared her sadness at the loss of a “political ally” and “close friend” on Mr. Degamo’s Facebook page. Her tweet made oblique references to the upheaval in the province, including the statement, “Authorities must start looking at the political conflict that has captivated Negros Oriental and has cost so many lives, not just of Gov. Degamo.”
Politicians in the Philippines are notorious for using private armies in the event of a violent conflict. Police claimed to have disbanded 150 “private armed organisations” before the general election last year.
Officials claim that many of these private troops operate outside of Manila in regions where power is mostly established by political clans.
In the southern Filipino province of Lanao del Sur last month, four police officers were murdered and three others, including the province’s governor Mamintal Adiong, were injured in a roadside ambush.
Last month, masked assailants killed Rommel Alameda, deputy mayor of the northern town of Aparri, and his five colleagues when they ambushed their van.
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