Poe seeks probe into public prosecutors’ killings
SEN. Grace Poe has sought an inquiry into the killings of public prosecutors nationwide to determine if there was a need to improve their security.
Poe filed Resolution 737 on May 17 urging the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, as well as the Committee on Justice and Human Rights, to investigate the matter.
The resolution was filed after three unidentified men shot dead Quezon City Assistant Prosecutor Rogelio Velasco on May 11.
“Obviously, due to the nature of their sworn duty and mandate, our public prosecutors are clearly constantly within the crosshairs of the most notorious, dangerous and evil-minded personalities in the country whom they ought to prosecute,” Poe said.
The latest victim was Ombudsman Prosecutor Madonna Joy Ednaco-Tanyag, who was five months pregnant, when she was stabbed dead on June 5 in what police said was a “robbery gone wrong.” Angelo Galvez Avenido alias Moymoy, the suspect in the killing, was arrested.
In 2017 alone, at least six public prosecutors were gunned down: Quezon City Prosecutor Johanne Noel Mingao (January 11), Caloocan Assistant City Prosecutor Diosdado Azarcon (May 22), Rizal Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Maria Ronatay (July 18), Quezon Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Reymund Luna (September 29), Mati City Prosecutor Rolando Acido (October 26), and Mandaluyong City Prosecutor Pablito Gahol.
“The lost lives of our valiant public prosecutors should not remain as mere statistics to be swept under the rug,” Poe said. BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO
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