Batanes politician denies hand in attack on Gov. Castillejos

MANILA, Philippines — A politician facing complaints of graft before the Ombudsman came out on Thursday to deny involvement in Wednesday’s assassination attempt on Batanes Gov. Telesforo Castillejos in Pasay City. Vicente Gato, who was Batanes’ governor from 2004 to 2007, said it is not in his character to kill or order anyone killed. In an interview with GMA News on Thursday, Gato admitted having a falling-out with Castillejos but said that was not enough for him to commit murder. “Kristiyano ako (I’m a Christian)," said Gato, who went on to suggest that the pre-dawn attack was probably a “simple road mishap." Castillejos suffered wounds on his neck and left shoulder when a group of heavily armed men on board Mitsubishi Pajero peppered his car with bullets at the exit of Merville Village near the boundary of Parañaque City and Pasay City at around 3:25 a.m. Wednesday. Doctors at the Medical City hospital in Pasig on Thursday said the governor’s condition was stable. Castillejos’ driver, Alberto Patimo, was hit in the head and shoulders and was also declared in stable condition on Thursday. Gato said that the “shooter" might have only been targeting Castillejos’ driver since most of the damage sustained by the vehicle were directed at the driver and not to the side were the governor was sitting. “Kung titignan nyo, lahat ng direction ng bala papunta sa driver ni Castillejos at hindi sa kanya (If you notice, all the bullets were directed at the driver and not at Castillejos). If you’re a professional killer, you wouldn’t miss that far from your target," he said. Earlier in the day, police investigators disclosed that there could be “political motives" behind the ambush on Castillejos, citing malicious text messages circulated allegedly by his political rivals. “My conscience is clean," said Gato, a retired Philippine Navy captain. He stressed that he has no reason to implicate such a crime since there is no political rivalry between him and Castillejos. “Hindi ko siya nakalaban noong nakaraang eleksyon sapagkat si Congressman Carlo Diasnes ang aking nakalaban sa pagka-kongresista (He was not my rival in the past election. It was Congressman Carlo Diasnes whom I fought with (for the lone seat of Batanes in the House of Representatives) ," Gato claimed. Likewise, Gato said that he is ready to face investigation by the Philippine National Police (PNP) to prove his innocence. Gato just arrived from the United States for a meeting with Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Lito Atienza, who is also a member of the Liberal Party. Earlier report told that the Pasay City police had traced malicious text messages circulating in Batanes province the previous week that Castillejos will soon lose his post. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo also ordered a very intensive probe on the assassination attempt even as the National Police formed Task Force Castillejos to look into the predawn ambush. - GMANews.TV