“I WILL jail the killers of children and journalists,” presidential candidate Jejomar Binay said Thursday, referring to Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte who earlier threatened to put him behind bars if he was elected president in the May 9 elections.
He made the statement even as Liberal Party spokesman Edgar Erice accused Duterte of getting “huge financial support” from at least eight companies that, he said, had been exploiting Mindanao’s natural resources.
Erice also challenged Duterte to speak up about his dealings with businessmen Manuel Zamora and Dennis Uy, the top officers of several mining firms operating in Mindanao
“Duterte has been boasting that he will not receive financial contributions from big business in order to avoid being beholden to them if he wins the presidency,” Erice said.
Binay on Thursday said he would order an immediate investigation into the summary executions allegedly perpetrated by the Davao Death Squad, which had been accused by the United Nations, Amnesty International and other human rights groups of killing of thousands of civilians including minors.
Binay said the probe would also look into the criminal liabilities of Duterte who, he said, had promised summary executions nationwide should he become president.
He said if elected president he would make sure the members of the Davao Death Squad, including Duterte, were sent to jail. But he would give Duterte due process.
“I will create an independent commission for the investigation of summary executions and for those who committed human rights abuses,” Binay said.
“But because we respect the rule of law, we will give Mister Duterte and the DDS a chance to defend themselves.”
Binay said it was terrifying to imagine the DDS spreading nationwide and becoming the Duterte Death Squad.
“He’s [Duterte] the real executioner of children and the poor. It is very dangerous if DDS gets the license to kill and without due process,” he said.
Binay also slammed Duterte for targeting only the poor as he belied Duterte’s claims that he went only after criminals.
He took Duterte to task for the unsolved murders of three Davao journalists.
He asked why the DDS killed Jun Pala, Ferdie Lintuan and Rene Galope who allegedly exposed Duterte’s illegal activities.