Cotabato town councilor shot dead — police

KIDAPAWAN CITY — A town councilor in North Cotabato province was shot dead by two unidentified motorcycle-riding men along the highway in Pikit town early Monday morning, police said. Inspector Elias Dandan, chief of Pikit PNP, identified the victim as Pikit Councilor Husain ‘Boy’ Alba of Barangay Batulawan, Pikit. Dandan said Alba was driving his pickup on his way to the municipal hall to attend the flag ceremony when the gunman shot him thrice in different parts of his body at the boundary of Poblacion and Barangay Batulawan. The incident occurred past 8 a.m. Alba was rushed to the nearest hospital in Pikit but was declared dead-on-arrival by the staff of the Cruzado Medical Center. Two angles are being eyed by the police in Alba’s death: work-related or personal grudge. At the time of this death, Alba was chairman of the SB committee on peace and order. — Malu Cadelina Manar/RSJ, GMANews.TV