Ernesto Rollin, a presenter on local radio DxSY-AM in Ozamiz City, in Misamis Occidental province (on the southern island of Mindanao) was killed on February 23. He was the first journalist to be killed this year in the Philippines, but the 99th since the return to democracy in 1986.
Aged about 40, Rollin was gunned down at close range at about 5:30 a.m. in a service station in nearby Oroquieta City by two men in caps and ski masks aboard a motorcycle, who checked to see he was dead before they drove away. Rollin had been on his way to host his 7:30-9:00 a.m. programme.
“We firmly condemn the murder of Rollin, the latest victim of a culture of violence and impunity that has ravaged the media in the Philippines for too long,” Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) said. “The motive has not yet been established but the modus operandi indicates it was a contract killing ordered by Rollin’s enemies and carried out by professional hit-men.”
"The reason for Ernie Rullen's murder is not yet clear, but the circumstances strongly resemble the frequent assassinations of Philippine journalists in retribution for their outspoken reporting," said Bob Dietz, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Asia programme coordinator. "It is good to see that police have responded and are watching closely to ensure that their investigation gets to the root of this latest attack."
The killers clearly knew that Rollin was in the habit of parking his car in the service station before catching a bus, according to RSF. His companion, Ligaya, said she heard the shots before seeing Rollin lying face-down on the ground. She rushed to him and tried to lift him up, but one of the triggermen fired a last in the back of his neck. This was almost certainly the fatal shot, Ligaya said, adding: “I had not expected that Ernie would be targeted.”
According to his colleagues, including the Ozamiz City representative of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), Rollin was well-known for being outspoken. In recent programmes he had covered a controversial decree concerning health workers and the use of cars by officials in Misamis Occidental province, according to RSF.
Under-secretary for justice Ricardo Blancaflor announced that police superintendent Leonilo Cabug had been put in charge of a special unit tasked with identifying and arresting the suspects. “As of this moment, elements of the task force headed by Leonilo Cabug are investigating the incident to determine the possible motive behind the killing,” Blancaflor said.
Rollin had been a journalist for the past 10 years or so. His outspoken comments on his prime-time current affairs programme on DxSY-AM had made him very popular in the province.
