Tolentino on Robredo’s drug war report: Who are you to judge?

Tolentino on Robredo's drug war report: Who are you to judge?

MANILA, Philippines — “Who are you to judge?”

Senator Francis Tolentino raised this question after  Vice President Leni Robredo reported Monday  that the government’s bloody war on drugs was a  failure.

Robredo served for 18 days as co-chairperson of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD)   until she was sacked by President   Rodrigo Duterte.

“Dapat  siguro kung sinasabi nya noon na kulang yung  datos  na sa maikling panahon na nanungkulan sya doon, e palagay ko yung  kulang na hawak nya ay hindi  makakapagresulta ng  isang accurate,  exhaustive evaluation  of what transpired during the last  three  years,”  Tolentino  said in an interview at the Senate on Tuesday.

(If she  was complaining then during her short stint  that  that data was incomplete,  then   I don’t think  it would result in an accurate,  exhaustive evaluation  of what transpired during the last  three  years)

“So hindi naman kayang mabasa  lahat yun sa loob ng  Christmas break  lang o ilang linggo yung nakalap nya na datos na maaring kulang-kulang o maaring biased na yung interpretation nya dahi lnaalis nga sya sa pwesto,” he   said.

(She could not  just finish reading during  the Christmas break or  within a few  weeks all these data  that  maybe incomplete or based on  her biased  interpretation  since she had been  sacked from her post)

The senator then questioned Robredo’s basis in concluding that the drug war was a failure.

Even Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Aaron Aquino, who chairs the ICAD,  questioned the data cited by Robredo in her drug war report.

Tolentino insists that  Robredo’s data might be wrong or insufficient since her service at ICAD  was abruptly cut.

“So paano mo mako-conclude yan na given the fact  na naalis ka na rin din  sa pwestong yun, wala ka nang continuing access dun sa relevant information which could probably produce  a more objective result?”

(So how can you  make that conclusion given the fact that you have been fired, and you have no continuing  access to relevant  information which could probably produce  a more objective result?)

“And how can you judge something which is still ongoing?  Ongoing pa ito e. Hindi pa naman tapos e di ba . Wala pa namang cessation (It’s still ongoing. It’s not yet over. There’s no cessation yet),” he said.

Tolentino  also  rejected  Robredo’s suggestion that   ICAD should be headed by  the  Dangerous Drugs Board, instead of  PDEA.

“E operational  yung PDEA e, iba naman yung board,  Dangerous Drug Board lang yun, more on  policy-making yun (PDEA is operational, Dangerous Drug Board is   just more on  policy-making),” he said.

“So again,  from a biased evaluation, with due respect, coming  from the Vice President e siguro mas maganda na  yung evaluation nya e kasama rin yung mga  pinagkunan nya  nung mga datos.  Hindi lang syang mag isa o tanggapan nya,”   the senator added.

(So again,  from a biased evaluation, with due respect, coming  from the Vice President, it would be better if she included  the sources  of her data in her evaluation. Not only  her  or her office)

Edited by MUF
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