EDITORIAL - If only all cases received the Mabasa treatment

If reports are to be believed, authorities are closing in on the mastermind behind the killing of journalist Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa.

According to the brother of Mabasa, persons of interested have identified the mastermind. But because this information neither came from the police nor was announced as an official development in the investigation of the case, we will not mention that name for now.

Mabasa was shot dead last October 3, and just over a month later the police are closing in on the man behind his death. Considering how justice moves here in the Philippines, this can be considered as swift as it gets.

Don’t get us wrong, we are happy this case appears to be wrapping up quickly. However, to quote that cringey expression young people use nowadays, we would like to say “sana all”. It would be nice if all crimes received this kind of treatment.

There is no doubt that police were investigating the case at their own pace, but there is also no doubt Mabasa’s being a celebrity, his being a public figure gave them wings, spurred them on, and added to the pressure on them. The entire nation was watching, government officials were breathing down their necks, and the public was demanding answers and fast.

But what about those cases that involve the murder of common people and --no offense meant by this-- absolute nobodies? These are cases where the nation isn’t watching, where government officials and the public don’t really have interest in. What happens to their cases? How fast do their investigations proceed?

Then again, it’s not just the nobodies whose murder cases are crawling. Even now the murder of some prominent people like mayors, lawyers, and policemen is still unsolved. There are the cases of David Navarro, Rex Fernandez, Mary Ann Castro, Baby Maria Concepcion Landero Ole, Delfin Bontuyan, and Ricardo Ramirez, just to name a few.

And those are just the cases in Cebu. Let’s not even mention still-unsolved cases all over the country, the still-unsolved killings of labor leaders, activists, and people whose work or advocacy was often mistaken as subversive.

We do not to seek disparage the police in pointing this out. However, this is to remind them that as they close the chapter on this one particular investigation, there are other cases are still waiting to be concluded, away from the public eye.