Philippine National Police Chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) stood by its statement that former President Rodrigo Duterte’s pledge to support officers during his brutal war on drugs “was not fully realized.”
Duterte previously assured policemen that he would claim responsibility if they faced legal and administrative challenges for their roles in the anti-drug campaign.
In a press release on Sunday, Nov. 10, however, PNP chief Gen. Rommel Marbil said officers faced cases “largely on their own,” adding that there was “no official record” that Duterte followed through with his commitments.
PNP: Over 1,200 cops faced challenges during Duterte’s drug war
On Wednesday, Nov. 13, the former president made his first appearance during the House of Representatives’ quad committee inquiry into his bloody campaign against drugs.
Quad comm co-chair and Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez pressed Duterte by citing Marbil’s statement.
The former president told Fernandez, “Alam mo, si Marbil, you remind him: Hindi nakalista yung bigas na binigay ko sa pamilya ng pulis, pera, enrolment ng mga bata, hindi nakalista diyan.”
(You know, Marbil, you remind him: the rice I gave the cops’ families, the money, their kids’ enrolment, that’s not in his records.)
“Don’t listen to Marbil,” he added in Filipino.
In a press briefing on Thursday, Nov. 14, Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo, PNP spokesperson, said, “Karapatan ng ating dating pangulo sa mga kanyang pananalita, but the records will not lie.”
(His remarks are within the former president’s rights, but the records will not lie.)
READ: Duterte told: Fulfill legal aid promise to drug war cops
She explained that the data on casualties cited in Marbil’s statements were sourced from the Directorate for Personnel and Records Management.
Further, the spokesperson said the legal and administrative challenges statistics came from the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management.
“This data is no joke, so this is not just the remarks of our Chief PNP. Solid data back this up,” Fajardo said in Filipino.
According to Marbil, 312 officers were killed, and 974 were injured in the line of duty under Duterte’s watch.
He added that 214 officers faced 352 criminal cases, 195 were dismissed from the service, and 20 were put in detention.