COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Three men armed with sharp machetes hacked and seriously wounded two voters in a polling precinct in Saguiaran town in Lanao del Sur at about 8 a.m. Monday.
The victims, Naim Rasdie Macunte, an employee of the Saguiaran municipal government, and Salman Acmad were immediately rushed to the Amai Pakpak Hospital in Marawi City for treatment.
Col. Christopher Panapan, Lanao del Sur provincial police director, said the victims were in the campus of the Maito Basak Elementary School in Barangay Maito Basak, Saguiaran when they were attacked, wounded in the hacking frenzy.
Panapan said witnesses have identified the culprits as Jamil Azis, Mocsir Azis and Samroden Riga, now subject of an extensive joint police-military manhunt.
The incident scared and forced hundreds of voters inside the school campus to scamper away.
Probers from the Saguiran Municipal Police Station said the victims are followers of incumbent re-electionist officials while the three suspects are identified with a candidate for a mayor hostile to the present municipal chief executive.