CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – The Central Luzon Media Association (CLMA) has condemned in the strongest terms the killing of veteran journalist Juan “Johnny” Dayang right in his home on April 29.
Dayang, 89, was reportedly watching television when an unidentified gunman, wearing a bonnet, fired three shots from outside his home at Casa Dayang in Villa Salvacion, Kalibo, Aklan.
Dayang also served as mayor of his Kalibo hometown, the provincial capital of Aklan, during the administration of the late President Corazon Aquino.
CLMA regional president Deng Pangilinan called the incident “a brazen and cowardly attack on a pillar of Philippine journalism,” and demanded swift justice for Dayang’s death.
“We are deeply outraged by the cold-blooded murder of Johnny Dayang—a respected journalist, a fearless truth-teller, and a voice for the voiceless,” Pangilinan said in a statement.
“No one deserves to die for speaking the truth. Johnny’s assassination is a grim reminder of the continuing dangers journalists face in the country, even within the supposed safety of their own homes,” he furthered.
“The culture of impunity must end. Each unresolved killing emboldens the enemies of press freedom. We urge the government to act decisively—not just with words, but with action,” Pangilinan said.
A prominent figure in Philippine journalism, Dayang served as president of the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PAPI) for over 20 years. He was publisher of Philippine Graphic Magazine and the now defunct Headline Manila and Headline Extra dailies.
He also served as president of the Manila Overseas Press Club, a former director of the National Press Club, and the founding president of the Federation of Provincial Press Clubs of the Philippines. At the time of his death, Dayang held the position of secretary of the Catholic Mass Media Awards and chairman emeritus of the Aklan Press Club.
“A crime most wicked, inflicted as it was on a pillar of the Philippines’ free press and one already of an advanced age,” said CLMA founding proponent and Punto Central Luzon editor Bong Lacson of Dayang’s killing, adding his voice to the cries for justice for the venerable journalist.
Lacson, who served as news editor of Headline Manila and opinion editor of its Headline Extra at the time Dayang was publisher, remembered “the fatherly Johnny D who always popped up at the editorial desk as we put the paper to bed, bringing food and ever solicitous of our needs, even personal ones.”
“I particularly owed Johnny D one when he intervened on my behalf over a libel suit all set to be filed by a prominent officer of the Philippine National Police that I called ‘pulis patola’ in my Headline column,” Lacson said. “Yes, I feel a personal loss.”
PAPI
In a statement, PAPI president Nelson S. Santos declared: “We strongly condemn this killing, and we are calling for justice. Hindi niya deserved ang cruel and senseless end.”
Santos said PAPI earnestly urges the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PFTOMS) and its partner authorities to promptly investigate the Dayang case, identify the killers and the brains behind the murder, and bring them to justice
“We join the entire media community in demanding justice for our chairman emeritus and his family. We also extend our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones,” Santos said. With media reports
