Sara Duterte asks Congress, DND support to exempt Davao City from martial law

Davao City Mayor Inday Sara Duterte. (HNP MEDIA FILE PHOTO)

DAVAO CITY — Mayor Sara Duterte is calling for the support of the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the Department of National Defense (DND) to exempt Davao City from martial law.

“We already sent a letter on August 17 to the Office of the President where we also attached supporting documents pertaining to our request for the city’s exemption from martial law,” Duterte told reporters on Monday.

“Yesterday, we also discussed it and then I said, it would be better if we also send these documents to the House of Representatives, the Senate and the Department of National Defense,” she added.

Earlier, Lt. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, chief of the Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom), said the cities of Davao and Cagayan de Oro were not included in their recommendation of areas to remain under martial law.

“We really thank the support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to have the city exempted from martial law,” Duterte said.

The Davao City Council passed a resolution in August this year asking President Duterte to lift martial law here.

Police in the region cited the city’s declining crime volume in support of the proposal, assuring that the city was already “fully secured and safe from any form of terrorism.”

President Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao on May 23, 2017, following the siege of Marawi City by Islamic State-inspired terrorist groups. /je