CHR slams Duterte’s death threat against Bangayan
Human Rights Chair Loretta Ann Rosales and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. INQUIRER FILE PHOTOS
MANILA, Philippines—The Commission on Human Rights condemened Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s statement, saying he was willing to kill Davidson Bangayan.
Human Rights Chair Loretta Ann Rosales called Duterte “utak pulbura” (someone who resorts to violence to resolve issues) for making the death threat against Bangayan, who is allegedly the rice smuggling suspect known as David Tan, before members of the Senate committee on agriculture Monday.
Rosales in an iterview over Inquirer radio 990AM asked the Senate legal and investigation department to look into the violations of Duterte’s death threat against Bangayan , citing that this is an assault to his office and to the Senate.
She said Duterte should have been slapped with contempt for his antics at the smuggling probe in the Senate.
Rosales called the controversial mayor “utak pulbura” for threatening to kill Bangayan in front of senators during a televised hearing.
Senator Cynthia Villar, senate chair on the commitee on agriculture, defended Duterte, saying the threatening statement was just a “figure of speech.”
Villar compared the death threat of Duterte to declaring someone as “personan non grata.”
Meanwhile, she said the Senate was seeking the cancellation of Bangayan’s passport.
“This is a greater punishment. If we will detain him in the Senate, what will it serve. He is attending our hearing, so there’s no problem on that,” she said, adding that they will arrest Bangayan if he fails to attend future Senate probe on rice smuggling.
On Monday, Bangayan was arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) not as the alleged rice smuggler but as an electricy thief.
He, however, was released after posting bail.
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