MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Director General Wilkins Villanueva on Tuesday expressed support for the revival of the death penalty by lethal injection, but said this should only be imposed on big-time drug traffickers.
“Execution by lethal injection is for big-time drug traffickers, and not for the street-level pushers. I strongly suggest that seized drugs weighing one kilogram or more should be the threshold amount,” Villanueva said in a statement.
Villanueva’s statement came after President Rodrigo Duterte reiterated his call, during his fifth State of the Nation Address on Monday, for the return of death penalty as a deterrent against drug-related crimes.
He said the absence of a law imposing capital punishment enabled detained suspects to continue with their illegal drug activities.
“The absence of capital punishment is favorable for drug peddlers who continue their nefarious activities despite being in detention,” Villanueva said.
“We have intercepted drug transactions perpetrated by convicted high-profile inmates while inside the national penitentiaries. They have found ways to communicate with the outside world one way or the other, and give direct orders to people involved in the illegal drug trade,” he added.