At A Glance
- Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial candidate Benhur Abalos has issued a message of solidarity for Filipinos based in Canada following the death of at least 11 persons who were plowed down by a car during Lapu-Lapu Day in Vancouver.
Benhur Abalos (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)
Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas senatorial candidate Benhur Abalos has issued a message of solidarity for Filipinos based in Canada following the death of at least 11 persons who were plowed down by a car during Lapu-Lapu Day in Vancouver.
"Lubos akong nakikiisa sa ating mga kababayan sa Canada sa gitna ng trahedyang nangyari kaugnay ng pagdiriwang ng Lapu-Lapu Day sa Vancouver, Canada (I stand in full solidarity with our compatriots in Canada amidst the tragedy that occurred during the Lapu-Lapu Day celebration in Vancouver, Canada)," Abalos said on Monday, April 28.
"Masakit sa puso ang balitang ito. Ang Canada ay tahanan ng libo-libo nating mga kababayan – may mga kamag-anak at kaibigan tayo na nagsusumikap sa Canada (This heartbreaking news weighs heavily on our hearts. Canada is home to thousands of our countrymen—relatives and friends striving hard in a foreign land)," said the senatorial aspirant.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families," Abalos, a former Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), further said.
He called on Filipinos to "join hands in prayer and hope" amid the tragedy.
ancouver police said the vehicle was driven by a person with mental health issues.
Abalos is also a former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman and Mandaluyong City mayor.