Hontiveros to gov't: Help expedite release of Percy Lapid's son in US

Senator Risa Hontiveros called on the government on Friday to assist in securing the release of Mark Mabasa, son of slain broadcaster Percy Lapid, from the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in California.

Mabasa is in the US seeking asylum following his father’s assassination and the reason for his detention has yet to be disclosed.

“It is unacceptable that a person who has been seeking asylum is detained without a clear reason. Mark and other members of Percy Lapid’s family applied for asylum a long time ago following terrifying death threats here in the Philippines. Our government should be able to help expedite his release as soon as possible,” Hontiveros said in a statement.

Hontiveros urged Malacañang and concerned government agencies to assist the Mabasa family, stating that it is the least the state can do after it “failed to protect Percy’s life.”

The Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles said on Wednesday that its representative visited Mark Mabasa to conduct a welfare check at the request of his family.

The consulate said it is prepared to provide Mark Mabasa with appropriate assistance in accordance with applicable U.S. laws and regulations.

Hontiveros said that she has already raised the matter with Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel "Babes" Romualdez, US Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson, and Philippine Consul General in Los Angeles Adel Cruz.

In October 2022, Lapid was ambushed and shot dead by two motorcycle-riding assailants while inside his vehicle.

At the time, Hontiveros revealed in a Senate press briefing that an unidentified caller had been making death threats against the Mabasa family, and linked then-suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag to Lapid's murder.

“The Mabasa family has endured enough. It has been four years since Ka Percy was killed, yet instead of receiving justice, they are being made to suffer again. We should not retraumatize a family that has already lost so much. They need to feel that they are not alone, whether here or abroad,” Hontiveros said. —VAL, GMA News