Whistleblower Niruh Kyle Antatico of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) was killed in Cagayan de Oro after releasing exposés on corruption. He was shot on October 10 while driving near a military camp.
Antatico, a former senior legal researcher, resigned from his job after being transferred to procurement. Prior to this, he issued a letter to his bosses requesting an investigation into a ₱75 million irrigation project in Lanao del Sur. According to him, the project was completed on paper but in reality was broken, superficial, and unusable.
Antatico has been receiving death threats since 2024 due to his social media posts about ghost projects and overpriced materials. According to his friend Percival Batar, Antatico has recently become more anxious and has mentioned threats on his life.
Antatico was known as a quiet but courageous government employee who exposed anomalies even at great risk. He left behind his wife and three children.
Congressmen Rufus Rodriguez and Lordan Suan strongly condemned the killing. They called on the DOJ, NBI, and PNP to find and punish the perpetrators. They said a congressional investigation is possible to look into the issues revealed by Antatico.
