Cebu City Councilor Philip Zafra
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Councilor Philip Zafra, the committee chairperson for peace and order, is urging law practitioners to report any threat to their lives.
This amid the killing of human rights lawyer, Rex Fernandez, in a daring ambush on Thursday afternoon, August 26, 2021.
The councilor said it is concerning that lawyers and other law practitioners are facing threats to their lives.
Fernandez was the 57th lawyer who was killed in Cebu since 2016 based on the data released by the National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL).
“Ato gikondenar ang pagpatay sa abogado, in a civilized city like Cebu. Pero salig ta nga gibuhat sa police ang tanan to investigate this.”
“Akong hangyo lang sa pulis nga tagaan ni nilag atensyon. Ubay-ubay na sad baya ang mga abogado nga namatay,” said Zafra.
The Cebu City Police Office has already formed a Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) over the incident.
The councilor assured Cebu City residents that the city remains to be a safe place to live and not worry about lawlessness.
He said such incidents are uncommon and sparse.
He also urged the public to be more vigilant of their surroundings, and cooperate with investigating authorities should they become witnesses to a crime. /rcg