Royina Garma, the former general manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), is at the center of allegations that link her to the assassination of PCSO board secretary Wesley Barayuga in 2019.
At the 7th Quad Comm hearing on September 27, Police Lieutenant Colonel Santie Mendoza revealed that he received an instructive call from National Police Commission member Edilberto Leonardo (Leonardo) regarding an operation targeting Barayuga.
Mendoza, despite his moral hesitation at targeting a fellow government official, said he felt compelled to comply because the directive came from Leonardo and Garma, both of whom wielded significant power and authority.
“Sa kabila ng aking pag-aalinlangan… ako ay napilitan na lang na sumang-ayon at sumunod,” Mendoza stated, revealing the influence of these so-called public servants.
Mendoza further explained that Garma had already facilitated the operation by providing a service vehicle intended for Barayuga, thus laying the groundwork for the ambush.
When the operation took place on July 30, 2020, Barayuga got ambushed while in his vehicle, resulting in his tragic death. Mendoza conceded that he participated in the killing of what he recognized as an innocent man: “Kasi po pumatay kami ng inosente.” This admission lifts the curtain on the chilling reality of a network built not just on corruption but on bloodshed.
According to Mendoza, after the assassination, he received P40,000 as a share of a P300,000 payment for the operation—money purportedly funneled by Garma herself, further implicating her in this conspiracy to silence Barayuga. The brazen nature of this killing underscores a grotesque abuse of power, wherein government officials purportedly handle murder as if it were a common transaction.
This incident did not occur in isolation. Barayuga had been vocal about his willingness to testify in ongoing investigations into corruption within the PCSO, raising dark suspicions that his death was orchestrated to thwart any potential revelations that could implicate high-ranking officials, including Garma and Leonardo, in the pervasive corruption festering within the agency.
As the Quad Comm delves deeper, both Garma and Leonardo’s connectionscome into focus. Their involvement as members of the Davao Death Squad paints a disturbing picture of how violent methods have not only infiltrated the highest levels of law enforcement but also turned them into tools for political oppression.
