COTABATO CITY — A bomb explosion rocked Shariff Saidona Mustapha town in Maguindanao del Sur Wednesday morning, killing a barangay chairman and wounding another village official.
The Shariff Saydona Municipal Police Station identified the fatality as Datu Manot Silongan, chairman of Barangay Penditen in nearby Datu Salibo town. The wounded victim was Salik Datua, a councilman in Barangay Ganta, Shariff Saydona Mustapha.
Investigators believe the improvised explosive device (IED) was planted on the roadside near the Ganta Barangay Hall entrance and detonated from a distance using a mobile phone just as the two victims passed by.
They also theorized that Mr. Silongan was the target of the bombing, following the murder of his brother, Councilor Demson Silongan of Datu Salibo, who was gunned down within the premises of the municipal government center last April 17. — John Felix M. Unson
