By Zia Luna
Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa was more than a broadcaster. He was a truth-teller in a time of fear, a voice that pierced through the fog of corruption, impunity, and abuse of power. His nightly commentaries on Lapid Fire were not just journalism—they were acts of defiance against a system that had grown comfortable with silence.
Lapid spoke plainly, but powerfully. He exposed anomalies in government contracts, questioned the lavish lifestyles of public officials, and demanded accountability from institutions that had long evaded scrutiny. His targets were not petty criminals—they were the untouchables: generals, cabinet secretaries, and political dynasties. He did what many feared to do. And for that, he paid the ultimate price.
On October 3, 2022, Percy Lapid was gunned down in Las Piñas. The murder shocked the nation, not only for its brazenness but for what it revealed: a web of complicity stretching into the very heart of the state. The alleged mastermind, then Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag, was a high-ranking official with access, influence, and a reputation for ruthlessness. The case exposed a chilling reality—that even from inside prison walls, orders to kill could be carried out with precision.
But nearly three years later, justice remains elusive. Bantag is still at large. The case has been archived. Witnesses have been intimidated. And the institutions tasked with protecting press freedom have faltered. The silence surrounding Lapid’s murder is not just about one man—it’s about the erosion of truth in a democracy that claims to protect it.
Percy Lapid was silenced because he refused to be bought, bullied, or blurred. He was silenced because he named names. He was silenced because crooks in government feared what he might reveal next. But his death must not be the end of the story. It must be a call to action—for journalists to keep speaking, for citizens to keep demanding, and for institutions to finally do what they were built to do: uphold justice.
To forget Percy Lapid is to accept that truth has no place in public life. To remember him is to fight for the very soul of our democracy.
