MANILA, September 11, 2013 – The Advertising Board of the Philippines (AdBoard) has called on president Noynoy Aquino and justice secretary Leila De Lima to bring justice to the case of slain account manager Kristelle "Kae" Davantes.
In its official statement, AdBoard said, "We condemn this violence, and demand the authorities to use their power to give Kae justice. We appeal for speedy, thorough, and full investigation."
It continued, "For what good are a rising economy and a growing GDP if the country’s people are unsafe? We still fear for our security, our lives, amidst this lawlessness. Kae paid for the persistent lack of peace and order in our country with her life – as did hundreds of other innocent victims and nameless faces that await closure and justice."
AdBoard also offered their resources to start an information campaign to keep the perpetrators of the crime from victimizing others.
"We hope Mr. President and Madame Secretary will heed our call for justice and vindication for our faithful colleague, Kae," AdBoard said.
Davantes was a senior account manager at McCann Worldgroup’s MRM. AdBoard described her as a "budding practitioner in the advertising/ marketing communications industry." She was 25 years old.
MRM managing director Donald Lim, Davantes’ graduate school professor at De La Salle University, shared that she was "very hardworking and intelligent," the automatic leader when it came to group discussions and assignments.
"Because she did very well there, I gave her the opportunity to work with MRM, when during that time, we were beefing up the agency. She agreed and joined us, and I had her work on one of our biggest accounts, which was Coca Cola that time. Our business with Coca Cola grew, mainly because of how she was able to do her job very well," he told adobo.
"At the same time, she was able to support and mentor the newer people coming into MRM into the rudiments and challenges of digital marketing. At her young age that time, she was a big sister to many," he added.
Lim shared that he saw her on Friday afternoon, the day she went missing. They discussed her thesis, which she was planning to work on this month.
"I didn’t know that would be the last time I will see her. I felt really sad to see one of the big potentials we have in our industry go ahead this way," Lim said.
Davantes’ body was found mangled in Silang, Cavite early morning of September 7. According to a report on Yahoo Philippines, police said that there are still no developments on the case, though they have ruled out sexual assault.
The metallic beige Toyota Altis (plate number PIM 966) that Davantes was seen driving is still missing.
(photo from #JusticeforKae Facebook page)
