Statement of NPC President Jerry S. Yap


Murder of 4th mediaman killed under Noy’s watch bred by indecisiveness


The National Press Club is grieving over the loss of another journalist shot 
dead on December 10, 2010 in Tabudok, Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur while it is 
feeling exceedingly disgusted over the continued inaction by the PNP and the 
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on the case of another 
journalist, a radio commentator in Dipolog City in Zamboanga del Norte who was 
tortured and planted with shabu evidence to ensure imprisonment without bail to 
stop criticisms against the local police.

Mindanao Inquirer’s columnist Edison Flamenia Sr. was gunned down in the evening 
of the Human Rights Day while walking to his home in Zamboanga del Sur.

The count of the NPC shows that Flamenia is the fourth journalist killed since 
President Noynoy Aquino took over last July 1.

Last July 3, Jose Daguio, a 75-year-old radio commentator, was having his dinner 
inside his house in Barangay Tuga, Tabuk, Kalinga when he shot dead.

Last July 9, Miguel Belen was driving his motorcycle along Zone 3, Barangay San 
Jose Pagaraon, Nabua, Camarines Sur when he was shot at 8:30 in the evening. He 
was on his way home when motorcycle-riding men fired at him. He was rushed to a 
hospital but died due to the injuries last August 28.
Edilberto Cruz, publisher of Salida tabloid, was shot dead in the evening of 
August 1 while driving his motorcycle along Maharlika Highway in Barangay San 
Juan Accfa, Cabanatuan City.

As in the case of Dipolog radio commentator Ryan D. Uy, the assaults against 
these four slain mediamen occurred during the night.

The assaults against Uy and the four slain media men occurred despite the fact 
that the main suspected perpetrators and masterminds of the November 23, 2009 
Ampatuan Massacre have all been put behind bars and the fact that the new 
president has brought forth overflowing hopes and promises that all crimes, 
including murders against the journalists, shall be dealt with in the harshest 
manner.

In fact, President Aquino and Justice Secretary Leila De Lima approved the 
proposal of the NPC to create a “Super Body” versus media killing. But this was 
eventually shelved and the NPC was promised a similar task force to be led by 
the newly-created Death Investigation Division of the National Bureau of 
Investigation. But this has yet to show its worth.

In totality, nothing has been seen as a decisive action on any of all 
media-related violence thus far. Nothing has been done to prevent more violence 
to occur.

In the case of Dipolog radioman, the NPC has written the President, the 
Secretary of Justice, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the Office of the 
Ombudsman, the DILG, and the PNP but nothing has also come out of it, except for 
the CHR writing back that it has already conducted its own investigation into 
the torture of Uy and the PNP chief Raul M. Bacalzo writing back that the 
Internal Affairs Service of the PNP have conducted its investigation.

The NPC saw the hands of Dipolog City police chief Supt. Reynaldo Mendieta 
Maclang manipulating everything that it has demanded for his immediate relief to 
ensure that the documents are not tampered with and the witnesses are not 
influenced in order to have a fair investigation into the matter. To the 
contrary, DILG Usec. Rico Puno told the NPC president that it was a case of 
politicking. As such, the Club wrote a stronger message to Puno telling him he 
is wrong, that rather the case of the Dipolog radio commentator was one of 
torture and suppression of the press. Any action of Puno on this has also yet 
to be seen.

The NPC particularly points to the fact that the Dipolog radioman was mauled 
black and blue during the alleged arrest for shabu buy-bust at 11:30 in the 
evening of October 29 but Maclang did not bring the commentator to the nearest 
hospital or doctor for the necessary medical attention. He also did not enter 
the arrest data into the city police blotter. He also refused Mariano Uy, the 
father of Ryan, and their lawyer Cres Palpagan to visit the son. These 
circumstances compelled the father to seek help from an equalizing force such 
that the governor of Zamboanga del Norte, Rolando Yebes, intervened at 8:30 in 
the morning of Oct. 30, compelling Maclang to allow the visit, the medical 
checkup, and the entry of the arrest report into the blotter.

In the case of the trial of the Ampatuan Massacre, where 33 journalists were 
killed en masse on November 23, 2009, the NPC always knows that the President 
and his cabinet and other officials have no control over how to speed up the 
proceedings. As such, the biggest and oldest organization of newsmen filed a 
petition before the Supreme Court asking to constitute the present court of 
Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes into a special court relieved of all other cases and 
duties to focus on the trial. The Highest Tribunal is yet to deliberate on the 
petition.

Nevertheless, this indecisiveness has bred further the resolve of thick-faced 
lords that it is still easy to silence the journalists.