‘Media Safety Vanguards’ deployed in PNP probe of Johnny Dayang killing
Local authorities examine the crime scene where veteran journalist and former Kalibo mayor Juan “Johnny” Dayang was gunned down in his home on Tuesday evening April 30, 2025. Photo courtesy of Jun Aguirre.
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) deployed its “Media Safety Vanguards” as it investigates the killing of veteran journalist Johnny Dayang.
Dayang, 89, was shot in his home by an unidentified assailant in Kalibo, Aklan, on Tuesday evening, according to the police. He was declared dead on arrival at a nearby hospital.
“We have mobilized our regional units and investigative teams, including the PNP Media Vanguards, to ensure that justice is delivered without delay,” Chief Gen. Rommel Marbil said in a statement on Wednesday.
“To harm a man of his age and stature, in the safety of his own home, is both an affront to human decency and an attack on the very principles of press freedom he upheld throughout his life,” Marbil added.
Dayang also once served as mayor of Kalibo, Aklan.
READ: Journalist killed at home in Kalibo
‘All angles being considered’
In a press briefing at Camp Crame also on Wednesday, PNP Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said a police special investigation task group (SITG) was already backtracking closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras.
“They are pursuing good leads,” Fajardo said. “All angles are being looked into by the SITG..”
“We will look at his previous engagements, his activities in relation to his being a media partner… In politics, we will also look into it, if he is supporting a candidate for this May national and local elections,” she added in Filipino.
Media safety vanguards
For its part, the PTFOMS condemned the killing of Dayang.
“We stand in solidarity with the media community as we mourn the passing of Mr. Dayang, a figure regarded as a pillar of Philippine journalism whose contributions greatly enriched our democratic discourse,” PTFOMS Executive Director Jose Torres Jr. said in a statement.
READ: ‘Specialized teams’ to protect journalists for 2025 polls
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The “Media Safety Vanguards” was relaunched by the PNP in cooperation with the Presidential Task Force for Media Security (PTFOMS) earlier this April ahead of the 2025 national and local elections.
The PNP Public Information Office (PIO) and its regional counterparts were tasked to oversee the initiative.
