Radio commentator killed after his program in Cebu —police

A radio commentator was killed by an unidentified armed man who shot him in front of the station DYRB Radyo Pilipino after his radio program Thursday morning, the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO )said.

CCPO deputy chief for operations Lieutenant Colonel Wilbert Parilla told GMA News Online that Renante "Rey" Cortes was shot at around 9 a.m..

According to him, Cortes was rushed to the hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

“Kanina around 9 o'clock, after sa kanyang program. Then, pagbaba niya , binaril siya ng unidentified. Then, he was rushed to Cebu City Medical Center but unfortunately patay na po siya,” Parilla said.

(Earlier around 9 o’clock, after his program. Then, he went out of the station, an unidentified person shot him. He was rushed to the Cebu City Medical Center but unfortunately he was already dead.)

Considering that Cortes is a media personality, Parilla said the city police are planning to create a special investigation task group (SITG) to probe the killing.

Parilla said the witnesses only heard a gunshot but did not see the perpetrator.

He said the police will request the family of Cortes for an autopsy on the remains of the victim. 

NUJP condemns killing

In a statement, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines - Cebu condemned the killing and called for a swift and impartial investigation into the incident.

According to the group, attacks against journalists and media workers keep rising and are being normalized simply for fulfilling their duties as watchdogs of society.

“We further condemn the culture of impunity that emboldens these perpetrators to commit these crimes,” the group said.

“We resist all threats and attempts to silence the media, to gag the fourth estate from bringing truth to power. We recognize that not forwarding truth only emboldens more of these senseless killings.”

According to the group, it was the second attempt to kill Cortes. —AOL/KBK, GMA News