Guevarra backs Duterte’s call to restore death penalty vs heinous crimes

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra.
INQUIRER file photo / MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

MANILA, Philippines–Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra believed that death penalty could “somehow deter the commission of serious crimes” as he expressed support to President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to revive the imposition of the capital punishment against convicted drug dealers and plunderers.

“As secretary of Justice, I believe that the imposition of the death penalty may somehow deter the commission of serious crimes,” Guevarra said Tuesday.

He said that “while it is difficult to measure or prove a negative proposition on how many crimes did not happen because of the fear of death penalty, ordinary human behavior indicates that the fear of being put to death for the commission of a crime will naturally prompt a criminally minded person to think twice.”

The Justice chief added that the Constitution itself allows Congress to impose the death penalty for compelling reasons involving heinous crimes.

“It is therefore up to the congress to determine the parameters of what constitutes a heinous crime,” he stated.

During his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, Duterte appealed to Congress to restore the death penalty to curb illegal drugs and corruption in government.

“It has been three years since I took my oath of office and it pains me to say that we have not learned our lesson,” he stated during the fourth Sona.

“The illegal drug problem persists, corruption continues and emasculates the courage we need to sustain our moral recovery initiatives,” the President lamented.

Duterte reminded that illegal drugs money funded the Marawi siege, which resulted in the deaths of a hundred soldiers and police officers, while thousands of families displaced. /jpv

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