MANILA – Police officers involved in heinous crimes should face death penalty if the punishment is reinstated in the Philippines, said Interior Secretary Eduardo Año.
“Hindi ako talaga natutuwa na itong mga pulis natin na nagpapatupad ng batas ay siya pa ang gagawa ng mga gan’yang karumaldumal na krimen. Sabi ko nga, kung ibabalik ang death penalty, dapat isama ‘yang men in uniform na gumagawa ng heinous crimes,” the DILG chief said in an interview over ABS-CBN’s TeleRadyo.
Calls for the reimposition of death penalty surfaced on ground the past few days after videos of a shooting incident in Paniqui, Tarlac involving a police officer went viral on social media.
In his fifth State of the Nation Address in July, Duterte renewed his call on Congress to reinstate death penalty for heinous crimes related to drugs and plunder.
Duterte’s call prompted the House Committee on Justice in August this year to start the deliberations on bills pushing for the revival of the death penalty. The Congress, however, has yet to pass a harmonized bill on the matter./PN
