Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Monday directed the National Bureau of Investigation to probe the recent killing of Cavite provincial health officer Dr. George Repique Jr. in Trece Martires City, Cavite.
In Department Order No. 486, Aguirre ordered the NBI to identify the perpetrators and build a criminal case against them.
“The director of the NBI is directed to submit report to the office of the undersigned on the development and status of the investigation,” Aguirre said.
Police reports said Repique was shot dead by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Trece Martires City at 8:30 p.m. last July 11. He was the third government physician to be killed this year.
In March, Dr. Dreyfus Perlas was gunned down in Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte while ophthalmologist Dr. Sajid “Jaja” Sinolinding was killed in Cotabato City in April.
The Philippine Hospital Association condemned the latest killing of a physician and called for a swift investigation and justice, describing Repique as a “progressive, strong-willed person” and a “compassionate physician and educator.”
“We demand swift retributive justice for our beloved colleague, not only to give his life of service no less than what it deserves and a peace [to] his family,” said PHA president Dr. Jesus Jardin in a statement.
The group said ensuring justice for Repique would also “make a firm stance for physicians and all the health professionals working tirelessly for the underprivileged.”