By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos | Philippine News Agency
MANILA – Malacañang on Tuesday denounced the shooting in an ancestral land of the Manobo tribe in Bukidnon visited by presidential aspirant Leody de Guzman.
“Violence has no place in any civilized society and we condemn the incident in Bukidnon where gunshots were allegedly fired against the camp of Ka Leody de Guzman,” acting presidential spokesperson and Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said in a press statement.
Shots were fired during de Guzman’s meeting with the leaders of the Manobo-Pulangiyon tribe in Butong village in Quezon, Bukidnon, the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) said Tuesday.
De Guzman, along with PLM senatorial bets Roy Cabonegro and David d’Angelo, held a dialogue with the indigenous peoples (IP) leaders who are allegedly complaining about the land-grabbing issue.
Andanar expressed hope that the people behind the shooting will be held accountable.
“We urge the local authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and prosecute those behind this dastardly act,” he said.
In a live stream shared on D’Angelo’s Facebook account, gunshots were heard around the 16-minute mark. In the video, people can be seen running and lying face down to avoid bullets.
De Guzman, in a Twitter post, said two people sustained gunshot wounds.
De Guzman, Cabonegro, and D’Angelo were unharmed during the incident.
The incident prompted de Guzman to call for peace in Mindanao and respect for the rights of the IPs.
“Alam nating mayayaman at makapangyarihan ang ating binabangga sa labang ito. Ngunit ibang klase pa rin kapag talagang direkta tayong dinadahas. Walang halaga sa kanila ang buhay nating mga maliliit (We know that we are fighting the rich and the powerful. However, it still different when we are directly attacked. They do not value the lives of people like us),” de Guzman said. (PNA)
– ag
