Ozamiz mayor Parojinog ‘knew he would be killed’

LANAO DEL NORTE, Philippines (UPDATED) – Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog – killed with wife, brother, sister, and 11 others in an alleged shootout before dawn Sunday, July 30 – was very much aware of the threat to his life. 

“He knew that he would be killed. [It was] no secret to him,” a close relative, who requested not to be identified, told Rappler hours after the bloody raid incident in Barangay San Roque Lawis. (READ: Deaths after nighttime warrants suspicious – Drilon) 

The arrest warrant was for illegal possession of firearms, but it was widely known that Parojinog and her daughter, the vice mayor, had been included in President Rodrigo Duterte’s list of narcopoliticians.

Still, the relative said, they were surprised at Sunday’s incident, pointing out that they local chief executive had been cooperating with the authorities since he was identified by the President as a drug lord. 

“We were shocked. We could not believe it,” the relative said. “I knew him and personally I am certain that he was not what he was accused of.”

She said Parojinog even had an anti-drug campaign, which didn’t spare even his kin – a claim contradicted by the information gathered by the police on the extended family. 

In an interview in 2016, the mayor said that since he was first elected in 2001, he had transformed Ozamiz City’s reputation as a source of drugs, especially shabu.

Vice Mayor Nova Parojinog, the mayor’s daughter, also said in the same interview that they presented to Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa their accomplishments in their anti-drug campaign.

The vice mayor and her brother Reynaldo Jr were arrested after Sunday’s raid.

According to reports, police confiscated about P1.4 million in cash, 500 grams of suspected illegal drugs, two cellphones, and an M16 rifle inside the mayor’s house. (READ: Ozamiz mayor wanted to surrender before raid – police)

The raiding team also went to the residence of Parojinog’s brother Ricardo in Barangay Bagakay, but he was not around. Seized from his home were assorted firearms, ammunition, alleged illegal drugs, and drug paraphernalia.

Police also raided Parojinog’s farmhouse in Barangay Cogon.

Aside from the mayor and 3 of his family members, also killed were Miguel del Victoria, Nestor Cabalan, Daniel Vasquez, and one still unidentified person, who were all members of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT). A certain Lydia and JR of Lumad TV were also among the dead.

According to City Administrator Mike Ochate, the remains of the Parojinogs were brought to a mortuary in Ozamiz. – Rappler.com