By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The Diocese of Bacolod Social Action Center (SAC) head yesterday condemned the killing of a parish priest in Cagayan last Sunday.
SAC head, Fr. Chris Gonzales, said the diocese was saddened by the loss of Fr. Mark Anthony Ventura of the San Isidro Labrador Mission Station in Gataran, Cagayan, who was gunned down by motorcycle-riding assailants.
Gonzales said Ventura was known to support anti-mining advocacies and also assistance to indigenous people in his parish.
While police have yet to confirm if Ventura’s advocacy was the motive behind the shooting, Gonzales said it is a likely possibility that he was killed for his “vehement opposition” to mining activities in the province.
Gonzales added, despite the killing, he said they would not stop their advocacy in helping those less fortunate.
He also quoted late Bacolod Bishop Antonio Fortich’s motto, saying, “’insta,’ meaning they have to bring the good message of the Lord ‘in or out’ of season and fight for what is right.”
Last Sunday, after concluding mass, Ventura was blessing children when he was shot dead by an unidentified gunman and an accomplice on a motorcycle.
Cagayan provincial police have since formed a task force to probe the murder.
The incident was the second in four months, after a priest in Nueva Ecija was shot dead by unidentified men./DGB, WDJ