CAGAYAN DE ORO — Media groups denounced the assassination attempt on Roxas City-based broadcaster Jay Lavapiez on June 22.

In a statement, the Negros Island Region chapter of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said that the incident aimed to intimidate, silence, and instill fear among journalists and media workers.

The group rejected attempts to reduce the assassination attempt as a mere personal dispute.

“Lavapiez, as a station manager and broadcaster, holds a public trust. Any attack against him strikes at the very heart of the people’s right to know and the freedom of the press guaranteed by our Constitution,” the group said.

According to NUJP’s national office, Lavapiez, station manager of Baskog Radyo, was on his way to the station past 5 a.m., driving his vehicle. He then saw two men on board a parked motorcycle across the highway of Villa de San Lorenzo, Barangay Cagay, Roxas City. Shots were then fired in his direction.

He reportedly parked his vehicle straddling the gutter to make the gunmen believe that he was injured. After this, the assailants fled the area.

Baskog Radyo said in a statement that they chose not to comment further on the incident as they want the authorities to do their investigation.

What happened to Lavapiez, it said, is a harsh reminder of what journalists and media workers face every day. However, it said honest and responsible journalism continues.

“If this attack was meant to scare us, it failed. No threat will ever change our commitment to honest, responsible journalism. No act of violence will stop us from keeping the public informed, and nobody is going to silence the questions this community deserves answers to,” Baskog Radyo said.

Lavapiez and his wife India faced multiple cyberlibel cases reportedly filed by local officials. India was arrested on March 11 for four counts of cyberlibel. She was freed that same day after posting bail.

Read: Group denounces libel vs Capiz broadcasters

In August 2025, the Sangguniang Bayan of Sigma approved a resolution declaring the two radio anchors personas non grata for allegedly disseminating false and misleading information.

NUJP’s national office urged authorities to promptly identify the perpetrators and the mastermind behind the attack. (DAA)

Disclosure: Bulatlat’s editor-in-chief, Ronalyn Olea, is the secretary-general of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines.