Mayor Jose “Oti” Montelibano yesterday said the grenade blast at his residence Saturday will not deter him from implementing reforms to move Silay City forward.

A grenade exploded at the residence of Montelibano at 2:15 a.m. Saturday, Supt. Roderick Alba, Silay City police chief, said.

It hit Montelibano's garage which is located at the northeast portion of the house at the corner of Ilang-Ilang-Locsin streets, in Silay City . No one was hurt.

The back windshield of an old Isuzu Gemini car no longer in use was shattered and the top of the car had fragmented pieces of glass from a fluorescent bulb. The jalousies of the windows at the maids and driver's quarters were also broken, Alba said.

Shrapnel also hit the walls of the garage, but the explosion did not create major damage, he added.

The police found a grenade safety lever 15 feet from the point of impact, Alba said.

When interrogated, one of the watchmen disclosed that while he was urinating behind a rubber tree, he saw two men in black T-shirts with bull caps riding a motorcycle pass by Ilang-Ilang Street from south to north direction and suddenly a big explosion occurred as the two, believed to be the suspects, hurriedly left, Alba said.

“The investigation on the blast is ongoing, we have not discounted the possibility that the blast could be the work of some of Montelibano's detractors or of Communists rebels,” Alba said.

“We are still in the process of investigating, nothing conclusive can be said yet,” he added.

“We at the Silay City police station are outraged and condemn this cowardly and terroristic act,” Alba said.

“We will exhaust all means possible to make those responsible answer for the crime they committed,” he added

Montelibano said he was at the house at the time of the blast and immediately moved to a safer place as a security measure.

The blast could be the work of people who want him to fail in initiating reforms in Silay City , he said, but “they won't intimidate or scare me”.

He said the threat on his life is not new, he has been getting threats through text messages. In fact the day before the blast he got a tip to be careful, Montelibano said.

Montelibano said he had apparently stepped on some people's toes in implementing reforms.*CPG

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