Duterte reaffirms justice for slain teenager, resolution of BoC corruption
By Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral and Kristine Joy V. Patag
Reporters
PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte on Wednesday said he will not justify the Aug. 17 killing of a 17-year-old high-school student in the hands of cops, saying the incident, which caused public outcry, was “really bad.”
According to police who seized the teenager in a fresh wave of anti-drug operations last week, Kian Loyd Delos Santos resisted arrest, prompting them to fire back at him. Reportedly recovered from Mr. Delos Santos were a .45 pistol and two sachets of suspected shabu (methamphetamine).
But this report has come under fire after a CCTV footage aired by local television networks showed Mr. Delos Santos being dragged by two policemen to a place where his dead body was later found. Eyewitness accounts also claimed that cops forced Mr. Delos Santos to fight back.
In his speech at the inauguration of a factory in Batangas, Mr. Duterte said the killing of Mr. Delos Santos was not done in “performance of duty” as he repeated his warning to policemen not to commit crimes.
He then reminded the police force tasked in carrying out his brutal war on drugs to only shoot those who violently resist arrest, saying a cop is “not supposed to die doing his duty.”
“What I reminded again the military and the police is that it should be in the performance of duty. That you are not allowed to kill a person who is kneeling down, begging for his life — that is murder,” Mr. Duterte said.
“I ordered them to destroy the apparatus of a drug organization. Hindi ko matapos yan kung hindi ko patayin yung nagluluto ng droga and pag-neutralize ko yung distribution,” he added. (I cannot put an end to that problem if I don’t kill those ‘cooking’ the drugs and neutralize the distribution.)
Mr. Delos Santos’s death has sparked outrage over the government’s revitalized drug war in the form of “one-time, big time” anti-drug operations, which saw their bloodiest outcome yet last week.
Religious leaders have added their collective voice to the clamor against the conduct of the drug war, and so too have Mr. Duterte’s allies in the Senate.
Mr. Duterte earlier vowed to bring justice for Mr. Delos Santos and assured the public that the cops behind the slay will “rot in jail” if proven guilty.
But despite the simmering public anger over the case, Mr. Duterte yesterday said his tough policy against drug-traffickers — which has been a hallmark of his three-decade political career — will remain.
“There will be war against drugs….I have a sworn duty to protect the people and defend the Republic,” he said.
“Why should I be afraid to neutralize you? My order was to destroy, and if to ‘destroy,’ the police and the military would kill you, that is your problem, that is not mine,” he added.
‘ENTERPRISING’ SON
In the same speech, Mr. Duterte defended anew his son, Davao City Vice-Mayor Paolo “Pulong” Z. Duterte, from corruption allegations after the presidential son’s name was dragged in the multi-billion shabu mess hounding the Bureau of Customs (BoC).
A BoC broker earlier this month claimed that allegedly corrupt officials of the bureau invoked the younger Mr. Duterte. But the broker admitted having no personal knowledge about the vice-mayor, only to often hearing his name mentioned as part of a so-called “Davao group.”
According to the President, his “enterprising” son frequents seaports to help in-laws in their family business, which is involved selling jars and garments.
He then reiterated his vow to give up the presidency if his son is found to be corrupt.
“’Yung mga pinapalusot ng in-laws niya (The in-laws he allegedly lets off the hook), if that is smuggling, then give me an accounting and I will resign. Walang problema ’yan sa akin (That’s no problem to me),” the chief executive said.
“But what I’m really committed to do is there will be no corruption in this government. I will not allow it,” he added.
Congressional hearings on allegations of corruption at the BoC, once cited by the President as one of the top three dirtiest government agencies, came to the fore following the shipment of P6.4 billion worth of methamphetamine from China that was able to pass through customs last May.
The BoC was back in the spotlight on Wednesday, following Senator Panfilo M. Lacson’s privileged speech on the extent of corruption in the agency, the same afternoon as Mr. Duterte’s remarks.
Responding to the issue, the Davao City vice mayor had denied the allegations against him and qualified the BoC broker’s claims as “hearsay.”
Mr. Duterte’s eldest child had earlier been linked by former Davao policeman Arthur Lascañas to a shipment of shabu, also from China.
UNICEF ADDS VOICE
Meanwhile, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef)-Philippines has added its voice to the mounting concern over the drug war.
“A fair and transparent investigation into Kian’s death should be undertaken as a matter of urgency,” Unicef-Philippines said in part, in a statement on Tuesday. “This investigation must be undertaken in a manner that seeks to guarantee the best interests of children and promote respect for their rights. Those who are responsible for killings and deliberate violence against children must be held accountable.”
The statement also said: “The Philippines, as a State Party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, has a legal and moral obligation to promote, protect and fulfill the human rights of every child. Every child’s right to life, to develop to her or his full potential, to be heard, and to be protected from all forms of violence are universal and inalienable. There are no exceptions. These rights apply without qualification.”
It added: “Unicef-Philippines joins the many organizations and individuals coming together to demand action to prevent any further loss of children’s lives. There is no higher value for a society than to protect its own children and youth.”
PROTECTIVE CUSTODY
For her part, Senator Ana Theresia Hontiveros-Baraquel, in a news conference on Wednesday, said witnesses in the killing of Mr. Delos Santos will remain on her watch, pending a request of transfer by the Department of Justice (DoJ) and Public Attorney’s Office (PAO).
Ms. Hontiveros said the witnesses remain in her protective custody until an official request is filed in her office, adding: “Consult family nila saan sila panatag ang loob and ligtas, and they said as of now panatag kung nasaan sila.” (We consulted their family where they will be at peace and secure. They said, as of now, they feel secure where they are.)
The senator visited the wake for Mr. Delos Santos on Saturday, Aug. 19, and offered protective custody to witnesses who have come forward and belied police reports that the student fired at them.
Mr. Delos Santos’s family then sought the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) for a case buildup against the Caloocan cops who carried out a roundup of suspected drug users and peddlers in Caloocan City.
The three police officers behind Kian’s death — Police Officer 3 Arnel Oares and Police Officers 1 Jeremiah Pereda and Jerwin Cruz — claimed that the student fired at them, prompting them to retaliate. Reportedly recovered from Mr. Delos Santos were a .45 pistol and two sachets of suspected shabu (methamphetamine).
But this version has come under fire after a CCTV footage aired by local television networks showed Mr. Delos Santos being dragged by two policemen to a place where his dead body was later found.
The senator said the three witness under her custody are two minors, 13 years old and 16 years old, and one adult. She declined, however, to further disclose their background, citing security reasons.
“Mga children takot and may malalim na trauma. (The children are scared and they have deep trauma. The witnesses) Mga saksi got the legal services of Atty. Minerva Ambrosia,” Ms. Hontiveros added.
But Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II warned that a known critic of the administration of President Rodrigo R. Duterte may taint the credibility of the witnesses who will testify against the cops who led the raid and allegedly gunned down Mr. Delos Santos.
“Of course it will affect the credibility of these witnesses considering the bias of their handler,” Mr. Aguirre said.
Mr. Aguirre on Monday said the DoJ is ready to offer government protection to the family of Mr. Delos Santos and the witnesses. He pointed out: “It is the [Witness Protection Program (WPP)] which has the mandate to protect witnesses.”
After the press conference, Ms. Hontiveros went to the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) Children Protection Unit (CPU) to let other government authorities meet with the witnesses.
Members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Commission on Human Rights (CHR), and Office of the Ombudsman were present in the meeting which was closed to the media. Members of the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO), however, could not attend, due to a scheduled budget hearing in Congress.
Ms. Hontiveros said the witnesses have already executed and signed their affidavit for the filing of the case and for the Senate hearing on the incident scheduled today at 2:00 p.m.
