A bomb exploded at the House of Representatives in Quezon City Tuesday evening, killing Basilan Representative Wahab Akbar and the driver of another lawmaker.
Two other solons and five more persons were also wounded in the explosion, just minutes after the House adjourned its session a little past 8 p.m.
Aside from Akbar, the explosion also killed Marcial Tando, driver of Gabriela Representative Luz Ilagan.
Philippine National Police Director General Avelino Razon Jr. said Doctor Arnold Corpus declared the solon dead at the Far Eastern University Hospital at around 10:25 p.m.
Mayor Talib Pawaki of Hadji Muhamad Ajul town in Basilan said Akbar sustained “massive head injuries,” including a fracture, but was still alive when brought to the hospital.
Akbar’s body will be flown home to Basilan on Wednesday in keeping with Muslim tradition to bury the dead within 24 hours.
National Capital Region Police Director Gearry Barias said Akbar was the likely target of the bombing but added that they still had to confirm this.
He said they suspect an improvised explosive device was remotely detonated because “the explosion occurred immediately after the suspension of the session at 8:05 p.m.”
Barias added that they were looking at one of two motorcycles parked a few meters from the south wing lobby of the Batasan as the carrier of the bomb. The explosion left a three-foot crater.
He said they are questioning a cameraman of the House of Representatives who owned one of two motorcycles but were not taking him into custody.
Among the wounded were Ilagan and Negros Oriental Representative Henry Teves.
Gabriela Representative Liza Maza, also identified another of the wounded as her driver Mike Lim. She said Ilagan, Lim and Tando were rushed to the nearby Miguel Malvar Hospital .
Dr. Ven Malabanan of the New Era General Hospital, where Teves was first rushed, said the solon was in "very critical condition" after sustaining blast injuries, including second and third degree burns and shrapnel wounds to the face and body, and needed to be transferred to St. Luke’s Hospital.
Two other victims, Julasiri 'Niki' Hayudin and Denis Manila remain at New Era. Dr. Mike Brillantes described Hayudini as also in critical condition, with shrapnel wounds and burns all over her body and a left leg that might have to be amputated.
Malabanan also said Hayudini is intubated and unstable while Manila might need to undergo surgery for deep shrapnel wounds.
Barias said Tando, who was identified through his identification card, died on the spot and suffered “a very big wound” in his nape. His body will be brought either to the police crime laboratory or the National Bureau of Investigation for autopsy.
Maza said she had looked out her office window on hearing the explosion and saw Ilagan’s car on the driveway of the south wing of the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City and next to a vehicle, reportedly Akbar’s Fortuner sports utility vehicle, which was on fire.
Representatives who were still inside the Batasan when the explosion occurred have not been allowed to leave.
The Gabriela solon said she and Ilagan had left the session hall together but her colleague went straight to the south wing to leave while she passed by her office.
She said she immediately sent a member of her staff down to check the situation and was told “there were bodies sprawled throughout the lobby.”
Reacting to Akbar’s death, Secretary Jesus Dureza, presidential adviser on the peace process, said: "I am saddened to know that a good friend and a leader in Basilan is among the casualties. Whatever the reasons and motives are, whether he is the target or the intended victim, we would have to leave that to the authorities to investigate."
He said Akbar had helped the government in its anti-terrorism campaign against the Abu Sayyaf group on Basilan island, where the militants are on the run from a massive military manhunt.
Akbar, 47, had twice served as governor of Basilan, a known stronghold of the extremist Abu Sayyaf.
He had spoken in the past of links to Abubakar Abdurajak Janjalani, an Afghan-trained Islamic firebrand who founded the Abu Sayyaf.
Janjalani was killed in a gunbattle with police in 1998, and Akbar severed ties with the group, later joining the mainstream and seeking an elective post.
Akbar also had known political enemies in Basilan, where politicians maintain private armies and often engage authorities in attacks.
De Venecia said he had ordered a "clean sweep" of the sprawling Batasan complex to ensure "there are no other bombs that are left behind."
Congressman Joel Villanueva said less than 50 of the House's 275 members were left inside when the bomb exploded.
Philippine National Police Director General Avelino Razon, who has arrived at the Batasan, is under orders from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to personally supervise the investigation of the explosion, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said.
Bunye said Razon is under instructions to determine the cause of the explosion and make periodic reports to Arroyo.
The House explosion occurred amid heightened political tensions in the country, with Arroyo facing a third impeachment complaint in as many years amid a barrage of political storms, corruption scandals and a feisty opposition.
Metro Manila has been jittery since last month, when an explosion ripped through the Glorietta 2 mall in Makati City , killing 11 people and injuring more than 100. Police says the mall explosion was an accident.
Visit the Source:
Maila Ager
Inquirer.net
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view_article.php?article_id=100700
