Pajo Barangay Captain Ahong Chan shows his certificate of candidacy for mayor in this May’s election as shown in this CDN file photo.
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Pajo Barangay Captain and Lapu-Lapu City mayoralty aspirant Ahong Chan said he believed that politics was the motive behind the shooting of his political leader during a campaign rally in Barangay Babag, on the late evening of April 27.
Cesar Siaton, was shot on his stomach by two unidentified assailants, after he escorted Dr. Celsi Sitoy, Chan’s running mate.
Siaton survived the attack and had been confined in a public hospital in Cebu City.
“Katong barangay Babag gabie, nag-campaign rally ta didto, unya ang usa sa atong mga lider si Siaton, maoy napusilan sa dihang ni-assist ni siya sa atong kandidatu nga si Vice Mayor Celsi Sitoy. Igo lang nakasulod, pagtalikod, gipusil dayon,” Chan said.
(That night in Barangay Babag during our campaign rally there, Siaton, one of our leaders was shot after he assisted our candidate for Vice Mayor, Celsi Sitoy. He had just entered and was heading out of the area when he was shot.)
Read more: Chan optimistic to win mayoralty race in Lapu-Lapu City
Before the incident, Chan claimed that some of his supporters had experienced alleged harassment from alleged supporters of other parties.
“Before nahitabo na gud, ang atong mga dumadapig gipang-harass naman sa ubang pundok. Dunay mga dumadapig nga gipangtamparos, gihuboan sa atong t-shirt, ug duna pod ta’y lider sa barangay Mactan nga gipusil-patay,” he added.
(Before this happened, some of our supporters had already experienced harassment. There were those who were slapped, stripped of their T-shirts, and there was even a leader in Mactan who was shot dead.)
Aside from that, Chan also admitted that he had also been receiving alleged death threats and alleged ambush plots.
Read more: Ahong Chan claims of getting ‘death threat’
He said that he already reported these incidents to authorities.
Because of this, he said he was appealing to candidates in the elections in Lapu-Lapu to observe clean, honest and violent-free election.
“Ang gibuhat sa kaatbang, nagpakita ug dili maayo. Dunay kasabutan, peace covenant gipahigayon, unta ila unta tumanon ang maong kasabutan,” Chan said.
(What the opponents are doing showed that they are not doing good. We have an agreement, a peace covenant. I hope that they would honor and follow this agreement.)
Read more: Lapu-Lapu police to recommend a downgrade of city’s EWA status
In the upcoming May 13 midterm elections, Chan will go up against former congressman and former mayor Arturo “Boy” Radaza, and Rolando Patalingjug.
Earlier, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza described the ambush plot against Chan as just his (Chan’s) imagination.
Radaza also said that Chan was allegedly only panicking because the election was drawing near.
” Iya ra nang huna-huna. Sa ato pa diay, iya nang buhaton sa amo? Nganong ambushon man siya kon ing-ana nga kuan na rattle na siya, di nami motagad anang ing-ana. Nagka rattle-rattle na gud siya. Ako pa niya mangompanya siya og maayo,” Radaza said.
(That is just his imagination. That this also mean that he would do that to us too? Why would we ambush him. If that is his action, then it would show that he had become rattled. We would not entertain those kind of allegations. It just shows how rattled he is. If I were him, I would just work hard in our campaigning.) /dbs