Kin of slain Cotabato radioman cry for justice

(Updated 4:23 p.m.) Relatives of Eddie Jesus Apostol, a part-time radio block-timer in North Cotabato, have urged authorities to dig deeper in their investigation into his murder. Apostol was found dead in the Liguasan marsh near Sultan sa Barongis town in Maguindanao province on September 1. According to Magpet town councilor Ramil Apostol, the victim’s eldest brother, the police officers tasked to investigate the case saw two probable motives behind the crime. First, they hinted that the killing could be related to his treasure-hunting activities. Ramil said his brother left their village on August 29 for a possible treasure hunt somewhere in Pikit town, in North Cotabato. He failed to return home from the trip, the councilor said. He was told the victim fetched a still-unidentified friend in Kabacan town and proceeded to Pikit on the same day. However, Ramil said he does not have enough information to determine the identity of Eddie’s friend, and whether he was also killed. Second, Ramil said the killing could have been the consequence of robbery. The victim’s brand new Honda XRM motorcycle is still missing as of press time, reports said. A former town councilor of Magpet town, Eddie Apostol was one of the information officers of the Philippine Councilors’ League in North Cotabato. He was also one of the hosts of a radio program, “Konseho sa Kahanginan” (Council on the Air), which is aired every Wednesday over radio station dxND of the Notre Dame Broadcasting Corporation in Kidapawan City. Apostol was still an active radio block-time co-host before his death, reports from the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said. “However, it is not yet certain if his murder was connected to his media work or may have been related to his treasure-hunting activities,” NUJP secretary-general Rowena Paraan said. Apostol and other hosts of the “Konseho sa Kahanginan” discussed only developmental issues and mainly interviewed local government unit officials about their programs and projects. Rep. Angelo Palmones of Agham Partylist sponsors the program, which first went on air on June 8, 2011, Paraan said. For its part, the National Press Club called on authorities to solve Apostol's killing. Editor's note: The reporter is the programming director of dxND.