Gunmen Slay Aquino Partisan North of Manila

Gunmen today shot and killed a local politician who had endorsed opposition candidate Corazon Aquino, police and opposition officials said. It was the first killing reportedly linked to the presidential election campaign.

An opposition leader identified the victim as Jeremias de Jesus. Former Assemblyman Jose Yap, who now works with Aquino, said De Jesus was killed a day after he told the U.S. Embassy that armed men were intimidating opponents of President Ferdinand E. Marcos in Tarlac, Aquino’s home province.

Assemblyman Luis Villafuerte, quoting a report from opposition leaders, said De Jesus was shot to death while aboard a Jeep in Capas municipality, 55 miles north of Manila.

1st Campaign Violence

Patrolman Reynaldo Omba of the Capas police in a telephone interview confirmed the killing and said it is under investigation. He refused to provide further details.

The killing was the first major violence of the campaign leading to the Feb. 7 election.

In another development, lawyers representing state-run television today denied charges of unfair coverage of the presidential election campaign, saying the rule of equal media access does not apply to Marcos.

Aquino’s chief counsel, Joker Arroyo, lodged a complaint Tuesday with the Commission on Elections charging that the state-run Maharlika Broadcasting System and another television network have been covering the campaign routines of Marcos and his ruling KBL (New Society Movement) but have not given the opposition the same media coverage.