By Ronron
May 2, 2007
Dismissed Mayor Prospero Antonio Esquivel of Jaen, Nueva Ecija filed charges of attempted murder and frustrated murder against Congressman Rodolfo Antonino, two identified policemen, a retired police officer, and 20 unidentified persons, mostly police officers from the Regional Mobile Group (RMG) III.
The case was filed last April 30, 2007 before the Nueva Ecija Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in relation to the April 26 shooting incident in Jaen town that resulted to the death of two persons and the wounding of 12 others, including Esquivel’s two sons.
Yesterday (Wednesday), Esquivel said the wife of the slain victim, Rufino Galang, also filed murder charges against the same set of respondents.
“I did not wait anymore for the investigation of the police. We have our own witnesses, medical certificates, and autopsy, which are enough to support our case,” Esquivel said.
Esquivel accused Antonino to have ordered his security personnel and elements of the RMG III to “ambush” him and his party while they were passing along the congressman’s political caucus in Barangay Dampulan of said province.
Antonino denied the allegation, and went on to blame the former Mayor instead for refusing to heed to the RMG element’s signal to slow down his convoy, prompting the outburst of gunfire.
Galang, 54, who is running for councilor in Jaen, and SPO1 Bobby Ferrer, 44, of the Nueva Ecija Police Provincial Office, died during the shooting incident. Both belong to Esquivel’s camp.
All but one (a member of the RMG) of the 12 wounded victims also belong to Esquivel’s camp.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Oscar Calderon welcomed the initiative of Esquivel, saying the court would be the best forum for the truth to come out.
“On my side, as chief, I want to know what procedures were violated by my men, who first committed the mistake, so that this will be corrected,” Calderon said, adding that an internal administrative investigation is ongoing within the organization against the involved policemen.
He said administrative and criminal sanctions await them if proven they erred because two lives were lost.
PNP spokesman Chief Supt. Samuel Pagdilao, Jr. said that as of yesterday, the paraffin tests on the RMG personnel involved in the incident and the ballistic examinations on their firearms have yet to yield results.
Pagdilao said the results are expected to be known this week.
Esquivel has blamed Antonino as being behind his dismissal from the mayoralty post in January of this year. The Ombudsman found Esquivel guilty of grave misconduct for the illegal recall of members of the Board of Directors of the Jaen Municipal Water District.
The April 26 incident has prompted the Commission on Elections to place the province of Nueva Ecija under its control for the duration of the election season./DMS
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