MANILA – The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) will hold accountable Davao City cops allegedly involved in the recent bloody anti-narcotics operations in the southern city.
According to Secretary Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos Jr., the Philippine National Police-Internal Affairs Service (PNP-IAS) will investigate the spate of drug killings in Davao City.
“Heads should roll if this is not a case of valid self-defense,” Abalos said in an interview. “There would be a thorough investigation by the PNP Internal Affairs Service.”
According to reports, seven people were killed in separate anti-illegal drugs operations in Davao City in a span of four days since Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte declared “war on drugs” in his area.
But even before the recent killings, Davao City had already seen a bloody trail in the anti-illegal drugs campaign with 28 recorded deaths from January 1 to March 25 of this year based on PNP data.
Mayor Duterte’s father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, launched a bloody war on drugs during his term that saw thousands killed in what authorities claimed were legitimate police encounters.
Meanwhile, former senator Leila de Lima has urged President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to “do something more” about the war on drugs in the Philippines, which she called a “failure.”
“There are still killings, and that’s why I have to make this challenge to the President that he should do something more about that,” De Lima said during the 67th United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs in Vienna, Austria.
“He should explicitly and categorically say, ‘Stop the killings,’” the former senator added. “There can be no effective transition if you do not deliver justice first.”/PN
