The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has started its own investigation into the attempted ambush of Vice Mayor John Bong Alvarez of San Miguel town in Bulacan last June 4.
In a statement, the CHR said "the continued occurences of violence against officials undermine the effective delivery of public service to their respective constituents."
Citing police reports, the CHR said the convoy of Alvarez was tailed by unidentified riding-in-tandem, and they tossed a grenade into the direction of the vice mayor's vehicle. It said when the grenade failed to detonate, a second grenade was tossed but it also failed to detonate.
Reports stated that the police has been looking into the incident to arrest the perpetrators.
Alvarez had issued a statement that the grenade attack was election-related since he recently announced his candidacy for the 2025 midterm polls.
The vice mayor added that an attempted ambush was carried out in 2012 already, which caused the death of two of his staff members.
"As an independent national human rights institution, we sound the alarm on the prevalence of violence in the country, the CHR said.
It also said: "This becomes more pertinent as the 2025 midterm elections approach, where these acts further impair the voters’ right to make free and empowered decisions during the polls. Allowing a climate of fear to grow amongst constituents can only negatively impact the electoral process. For a democratic country to thrive, we must ensure that the credibility of elections is preserved."
As it carries out its investigation, the CHR vowed to remain vigilant on similar incidents of violence.
It urged the government and local authorities to put preventive mechanisms in place to prevent similar acts of attacks against public officials.