Palace refutes Duterte’s claim that crime remains rampant in PH

The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee secretary administers the oath of former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Monday, October 28, 2024 before he begins his testimony before the subcommittee investigating motu proprio the alleged extra-judicial killings during his administration. (Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)

MANILA, Philippines — The Palace refuted former President Rodrigo Duterte’s claim during a Senate hearing on Monday that crime remains rampant in the Philippines.

READ: Duterte on drug war: I did what I had to do to protect the people

“With due respect to former President Rodrigo Duterte, there is no truth to his statement that crime remains rampant in the country,” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said in a statement.

“Statistics from the Philippine National Police (PNP) shows the complete opposite. There has been a widespread decline in crime across the board,” he added.

Bersamin also noted that the Marcos administration has achieved “stability and maintained peace and order” in the country without compromising due process nor setting aside the basic human rights of any Filipino.

“Further, the incident which the former President cited — of a drug raid in San Miguel, Manila — is based on outdated information. In that case, one suspect was arrested, drug paraphernalia was seized, and his partner is now being pursued by law enforcement,” he said.

“All of this shows that our country is safer, our people more secure, and our future more assured than ever before under the stewardship of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.,” he added.

For the first time on Monday, Duterte appeared in a congressional inquiry into his administration’s drug war dubbed as Oplan Tokhang.

Duterte was among the resource persons invited to the motu proprio investigation of the Senate Blue Ribbon subcommittee chaired by Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel II.