Philippine mayor assassinated day after another was shot dead

Gunmen on motorbike repeatedly shot Ferdinand Bote with pistol

(AFP/Getty Images)

A mayor has been gunned down in the Philippines for the second time in as many days.

Assassins on a motorbike shot Ferdinand Bote with a pistol as he left a government compound in a n SUV in northern Nueva Ecija province.

The 57-year-old is the 12th elected local official to be murdered since the Southeast Asian country’s president, Rodrigo Duterte, unleashed a deadly anti-drugs campaign after coming to power two years ago.

“He was repeatedly shot with the use of a short firearm,” police said in an initial report, but the driver escaped unhurt.

Police said the gunman escaped. At least 18 empty shells were retrieved at the scene.

His death came less than 24 hours after another mayor, Antonio Halili, was shot in the heart and killed while singing the national anthem at a flag-raising ceremony in his city of Tanauan, south of the capital, Manila.

The moment he was hit with a single shot led to panic among the 300 strong crowd he was speaking to.

The 72-year-old previously gained prominence in 2016 for parading drug suspects in the streets of the city.

Mr Duterte said the mayor may have had some drug involvement and his “walk of shame” campaign to parade suspects was a ploy to convince police he was not engaged in the illegal drug trade.

At least three mayors accused by his administration of involvement in the drug trade had been killed in raids by or clashes with the police.

The government will spare no effort in getting to the bottom of the latest crime, said Harry Roque, a spokesman for Mr Duterte.

“We assure everyone that we will discharge the state obligation for every murder,” Mr Roque said in a statement, promising a fair and thorough investigation by police to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Police have killed more than 4,200 people in Mr Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign since July 2016, with another 2,500 suspected drug suspects killed by unknown assailants over the same period.

Human rights advocates said the victims were executed by the police, who have denied the accusations, saying most of the killings were done in self-defence.