MisOcc Gov. Henry Oaminal undeterred by latest assassination attempt

MISAMIS OCCIDENTAL - After successfully evading an assassination attempt Sunday night, Misamis Occidental Governor Henry Oaminal Sr. reaffirmed his administration’s fight against crime in the province.

Oaminal described the attack as “a blatant example of the very type of violence that our governance is working hard to root out of Misamis Occidental.” 

The governor was passing through Clarin town when an explosive device was set off. In a live video stream on his Facebook page that followed a few hours after the incident, Oaminal assured Misamisnons that he suffered no injuries and there were no casualties from the incident, with only two security vehicles sustaining damages. 

“Many crime lords and drug syndicates lost hundreds of millions worth of illegal operations when law and order was restored in the province. This is undoubtedly the reason why they are resorting to such desperate tactics,” the governor explained. 

While suspects have yet to be identified, the governor admitted that his administration made “many enemies out of previously untouchable criminal elements in the province, in the years spent restoring peace and order.” 

The bombing was the fourth attempt on Oaminal's life. In a video that eventually went viral on social media last December 2021, the governor was injured in a sniper attack during a Christmas party, where his vice gubernatorial candidate Michael Gutierrez was killed. 

Another incident before this involved actress Kim Chiu, whose vehicle was mistaken as Oaminal’s when gunmen opened fire. The governor then divulged that intelligence reports from the Philippine National Police (PNP) revealed that crime lords had placed a P15 to P20 million bounty on his life. 

“I will not be deterred by this cowardly ambush. I assure our Misamisnons that we will press on and keep the peace." 

Following the explosion in Clarin, town police requested the assistance of Provincial Explosive and Canine Unit-Misamis Occidental and Provincial Force Unit to clear the area and survey its safety. Checkpoints and dragnet operations were also set up by provincial police to bust possible perpetrators. (Mindanao Examiner)