‘I still believe in legal powers’
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — Former Pampanga Fourth District Congresswoman Anna York Bondoc-Sagum disclosed on Wednesday that she still believes in legal and police powers.
Bondoc-Sagum, who helped his brother Congressman Juan Pablo “Rimpy” Bondoc in asking Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Andres Bautista address the issues and alleged election related violence in the town of Apalit.
In a letter to Bautista dated April 27, 2016, Bondoc said that several towns in the Fourth Legislative District of Pampanga namely Apalit, Masantol and Sto. Tomas be declared election hotspots and placed under Comelec control and tighten security and increase police visibility in the conduct of free, peaceful, orderly, honest and credible elections.
In the letter were also documents attached listing the names of the people who were being harassed by unidentified men riding motorcycles wearing bonnets and the unsolved killings of some of the political candidates and some of Bondoc’s leaders in Apalit town.
Bondoc-Sagum said that she requested and sought additional police assistance for the town from the Police Regional Office III Director Rudy Lacadi n.
“Hindi ako yung nag-request. Ako lang tumulong kasi this is election season and everybody is busy. Dalawa lang kaming magkapatid and they are killing our campaign managers wala ng magca-campaign. So, I guess Congressman Rimpy needed to continue campaigning eh wala ng ibang maglalakad kaya ako na ang naglakad sa request niya,” said Bondoc-Sagum.
“I requested the Comelec and Philippine National Police to look into the matter of the killing of one of our leaders and perhaps to place Apalit under election control. Hindi naman pwedeng level zero because level zero is no problem. I don’t think it is legally and morally correct to have a level zero here,” added Bondoc-Sagum
Vicente Pingol, 73, one of Bondoc’s leaders was shot dead recently by two unidentified men riding a motorcycle and wearing bonnets at Sitio Sampaga, Barangay San Vicente, Apalit town.
Bondoc-Sagum also said that the assistant of Pingol was hit by a tricycle last March.
Aside from Pingol, one of Bondoc’s campaign managers named Cornelio Danganan was also shot dead in front of the Apalit public market by unidentified men.
“I like to ask the police that how come during election period there are people carrying guns wearing bonnets wandering around the public market which has a lot of people?” she said.
“Sabi ko nga kay General Lacadin during our meeting, you are still lucky I’m just complaining kase if someone is not complaining, anong meaning nun? No need for police aayusin na lang namin ng sarili namin but the fact that I still believe in legal powers and police powers at may mga tao na ayaw nilang ang kanilang mga anak ay maharap lang sa patayan ng patayan,” Bondoc-Sagum stressed.
On the other hand, Lacadin and Comelec Assistant Regional Director Emmanuel Ignacio said in a press conference recently that the incidents in Apalit are now under validation if it was election related.