By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) Panay Secretary-General Elmer Forro on Tuesday claimed that the murder charges filed against him by the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Lambunao, Iloilo were part of a “pattern” to silence groups across the country who have been critical of the Duterte administration.
Forro received a subpoena on Aug. 13, 2020 for murder and multiple attempted murder charges in relation to an alleged clash between the New People’s Army (NPA) and the Philippine Army (PA) in Lambunao on Apr. 7, 2020.
The encounter resulted in the death of Army Private First Class (PFC) Mark Nemis.
In an interview with Bombo Radyo Iloilo, Forro laughed at the charges, saying that he was “busy” with relief activities in Iloilo City while it was under the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
“I have already presented my evidence that in those days I was very busy in the city and we were actually in a lockdown. We were under ECQ. At this time, I had many interviews with the media due to our relief assistance activities for those affected by the lockdown, and we were continuing our feeding program. We were also continuing consultations with different groups to continue these efforts,” Forro said.
Forro answered the claim of Major Cenon Pancito, PA 3rd Infantry Division spokesperson, to the media on Monday that he was positively identified in the clash, but without knowledge as to the extent of his involvement.
He said that it was “funny” that the PA could not come up with the extent of his participation.
“What’s funny is that they must have seen me only with a megaphone, a microphone, pentel pen, or chalk, because those are the only things I know how to use. Major Pancito said that I was positively identified in the ambush but they still don’t know the extent of our participation. What do they mean by the extent of my participation being unknown? Was I holding a megaphone during the ambush? They can’t even identify my participation,” he said.
He added that while he laughed at the charges, the allegations were serious, calling them “absurd”.
“This is not a laughing matter, but a serious threat to me and to all the critics of the government. They are desperate to silence us. The truth is that I don’t know how to hold firearms. It’s really absurd. BAYAN Panay Secretary General participating in an ambush? That’s a heavy, out of place, and a trumped-up case. This made me laugh because this is such an absurd case,” he said.
He added that they have been facing charges since their ECQ protest action in April, and that the charges were part of a “pattern” by the Duterte administration against its critics.
He cited several recent incidences in Iloilo province and Camarines Sur province as other parts of the said “pattern.”
“We’ve been facing so many cases here in the city since April because of our protests, and now there’s a heavier case because this is an attempted murder case. This is a serious accusation, and this is a non-bailable offense. This is not an isolated case, because just the other day, Fr. Marco Solayao was harassed [in Batad] and a few days back, the Chairperson of BAYAN Camarines Sur and the Deputy Secretary-General of PISTON Camarines Sur were also arrested on trumped-up murder charges. This means that this is a pattern, and they would really want to silence the critics of the government,” Forro said.
Forro said he is hopeful that the provincial prosecutor will be fair and just with handling the charges, but also cautious because of pressure that might come from the government.
“I’m still hopeful that our provincial prosecutor will be fair and just, and to examine the evidence that I’ve submitted. But we cannot avoid the thought that because of the pressure brought by this regime, the case will be forcibly elevated,” he said.
