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By Prince Golez, Manil Reporter
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Tuesday, January 31, 2017
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Filipino police officers march during the 64th founding anniversary of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group on Jan. 23 at the Philippine National Police National Headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City.PNP-PIO
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MANILA – Several senators weigh in on the government’s fight against illegal drugs, which has reportedly killed at least 7,000 people across the country.
Early Monday, President Rodrigo Duterte said he would extend his war on drugs “until the end of my term.” In September last year, the President, who vowed to stop illegal drugs in six months during the May elections campaign, asked the public for another six months to solve the illegal drug problem.
Chief director general Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa of the Philippine National Police (PNP), on the other hand, called for the suspension of its anti-drug operations in favor of “internal cleansing.”
Duterte admitted that 40 percent of the police force is involved in corrupt activities.
“Humanda kayong masasamang mga pulis. Wala na kaming war on drugs. Meron kami war on scalawags,” dela Rosa said. “Lilinisin muna naming ang hanay namin ngayon tapos maybe babalik na namin ang war on drugs.”
“I don’t know how long will it take to cleanse the PNP, but with each and everyone of us cooperating, I am sure, kahit siguro sabihin mong one month, kayang tapusin ‘yan,” he added.
“I believe that many in the police force are honest. The PNP as an institution is worth saving. What we need are deep-cutting reforms such as stricter requirements at the recruitment level, better police benefits, capacity enhancement, and infrastructure modernization,” Sen. Risa Hontiveros said.
Hontiveros expressed deep concern that the planned internal cleansing would only create a “far deadlier” narco police force.
Duterte’s planned expansion of the war on drugs would turn the police organization into a “vigilante death squad” and “most organized criminal group in the country,” said Sen. Leila de Lima.
“This is why I continue to worry about the state of the President’s mental health. He displays signs of cognitive dissonance not only in his carefree monologues but worse, also in his official pronouncements,” de Lima said.
“This latest incongruence between his factual assertion of a rotten police force on the one hand and his reliance on them to continue persecuting his drug war as official government police has dire consequences, which means more killings by corrupt and criminal policemen,” she added.
The former Justice secretary likewise warned that de la Rosa’s order to stop the drug war “can be all part of their media obfuscation strategy.”
Meanwhile, Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV believes the PNP’s move to shift focus from anti-drug operations to internal cleansing will help restore the public’s trust in the police force.
“This is a step in the right direction for the PNP as it works on regaining the public trust after several controversial incidents involving bad elements within the organization,” the senator ended./PN
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