Gunmen ambush father-son tandem in N. Cotabato town

KIDAPAWAN CITY - Unidentified gunmen ambushed Saturday afternoon a father and son tandem riding on a motorbike in a far-flung village in Arakan, North Cotabato, police said. Supt. Bernard Tayong, speaking for theNorth Cotabato Police Provincial Office (NCPPO), told DXND-AM Radyo Bida thatRoger Forman Jr died from multiple gunshot wounds while his father, Roger Sr., was critically wounded and is now confined at the Arakan Valley District Hospital. Tayong said the duo were riding tandem on a Kawasaki motorbike driven by Roger Jr when gunmen opened fire on them along a narrow and dirt road in Barangay Makalangot. Tayong said police investigators remainclueless on the identity and motive of the attack. The Arakan PNP is exerting all means to determine the motive. For now we are facing blank wall and still conducting thorough investigation, Tayong said, adding that one possible motive could be personal since the elder Fornan was a militiaman. The ambush occurred three days after peasant leader Joel Gulmatico was shot dead last week.Gulmatico chairs the Arakan Peasant Progressive Organization (APPO), a group working for the welfare of co-farmers.No one has claimed responsibility in the Gulmatico killing. The PNP has created Task Force Gulmatico to probe further his murder. Arakan town Mayor Rene Rubino condemned the incidents and urged police to bring the perpetrators behind bars. Rubino also orders stricter measure as the town's Sagayan Festival starts today.