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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Deaths of drug lords, narco-pols on me–Duterte

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President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said the killing of suspected drug traffickers and so-called narco-politicians are on him as the International Criminal Court begins its probe on the thousands of deaths in relation to the government's anti-narcotics campaign.

"Those drugs who were killed during raids, those mayors—they are all on me. All raids that killed mayors are on me," the President said in a speech during the inauguration of the Puerto Princesa Seaport Expansion Project in Palawan yesterday.

"I assume full responsibility. And if there’s anybody who should go to prison, it should not be the police nor the PDEA [Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency]. It should be me because they were acting upon my orders," Duterte added.

The President, however, insisted that he will not be tried by a non-Filipino judge nor will he accept jurisdiction of the ICC.

"They want me to go to prison. Well, maybe. But it has to be a Philippine prison and I must be judged by a judicial court of the Republic of the Philippines. And I must be prosecuted by a Filipino.

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What is their [ICC] problem? Why do they want to come here?" 

"That is why I will never accept ICC jurisdiction. Hell can freeze over before I will accept their stupidities," the President added.

As this developed, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police have agreed to conduct joint investigation and prosecution of all alleged human rights violations, particularly deaths of suspects, arising from the government’s illegal drugs operations.

This agreement was signed by NBI Officer-In-Charge Director Eric Distor and PNP chief General Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar.

The signing of the NBI-PNP partnership agreement came after the PNP allowed the NBI to undertake case build-up on the 52 cases of illegal drugs operations that resulted in the deaths of 56 persons.

Earlier this week, the Commission on Human Rights said that only 11 of 466 suspects who allegedly resisted arrests and “fought back” survived during the illegal drugs operations conducted by the police from 2016 to 2020 in the National Capital Region, Region III, and Region IV-A.

The DOJ said the MOA “will provide the legal framework to both the NBI and the PNP for the speedy and thorough resolution of these and future cases, and affirms the Philippine Government’s commitment to conquer impunity and prevent excesses in law enforcement operations.”

“The PNP and the NBI shall jointly evaluate the government’s anti-illegal drug operations, and, where necessary, determine possible criminal liability on the part of the police officers involved in these operations,” read the agreement.

“As state agencies, both parties seek to ascertain the truth regarding the allegations of human rights violations and possible criminal liability in the conduct of the government’s anti-illegal drug operations."

Both the NBI and the PNP will “designate representatives from their respective agencies for ease of coordination.”

The PNP will designate a representative each from the Internal Affairs Service’s Prosecution Division and the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management.

The NBI, on the other hand, will assign a representative each from its Office of the Assistant Director for Regional Operations Service, Office of the Assistant Director for Investigation Service, Office of the Assistant Director for Intelligence Service, and the Office of the Assistant Director for Forensic Service.

Justice Secretary Guevarra expressed confidence that even if there would be a change in leadership in the PNP, it would continue to cooperate in finalizing the MOA on the investigation of “nanlaban” cases and would be committed in the drug war review since these are directives given by President Rodrigo Duterte.

Some 154 policemen are already facing administrative liability before the PNP over the 52 drug war operations, and the NBI has been tapped to determine if there is a corresponding criminal liability.

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