Alvarez won’t back probe into killings

Presumptive Speaker Davao Del Norte Rep. Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez.
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

Presumptive Speaker Davao Del Norte Rep. Pantaleon “Bebot” Alvarez on Tuesday said he was not alarmed by the spate of summary killings in the country since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office.

In a phone interview, Alvarez said he also saw no need for the House of Representatives to investigate the alleged extrajudicial killings of suspected drug pushers or those killed during legitimate police operations.

“Hindi ako naa-alarm. Alam kong malala ang problema (ng droga), e di hayaan natin yung executive branch kung anong ginagawa nila dyan,” Alvarez said.

He said Congress should let Duterte fulfill his campaign vow of eliminating criminals in a bloody war within three to six months of his administration.

“Alam mo, nanalo ang presidente dahil sa advocacy niya na ayusin niya ang bansa na three to six months, he will address criminality. Hayaan natin siya to deliver the promise,” Alvarez said.

He said Congress should instead focus on investigating more pressing matters, like the hefty bonuses being received by the executives of the Social Security System.

He said he opposed any congressional investigation on the string of killings of criminals because it is unclear which piece of legislation would be the result of such congressional probe.

“Hindi ko maintindihan kung anong legislation ang target nito kasi in aid of legislation. Anong legislation? Kung nakikita mo mayroon na tayong legislation (against) summary killings,” Alvarez said.

He added that he does not want Congress to be suspected of protecting drug lords by investigating the killings of drug pushers.

“Alam mo naman ang drug money, malaki yun. Ayaw ko naman ma-implicate ang Congress sa ginagawa nating investigation, na kumbaga mapigilan ang executive branch yung anti-drug campaign kasi pag suspetsahan tayo dyan na tayo ay nabayaran ng mga drug lord,” Alvarez said.

He said the investigation into extrajudicial killings should be left to the Department of Justice and the National Bureau of Investigation.

Solicitor General Jose Calida earlier vowed to protect police from attending congressional investigations into the spate of extrajudicial killings of criminals and the killings of criminals during legitimate police operations.

“I am here to encourage the PNP not to be afraid of any congressional or Senate investigations. We will defend them,” Calida said in a press conference in Camp Crame on Monday.

READ: SolGen Calida vows to protect cops amid spate of drug suspect deaths 

Senator Leila De Lima and Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat have pushed for the congressional resolutions urging Congress to probe the summary killings of drug pushers and criminals that seem to happen daily since the start of the administration of Duterte, who has supported a bloody war against criminals and drug syndicates.

“We have to look into that in aid of legislation. The killings are on the rise, and there are just tell-tale signs of summary executions in a number of them,” said De Lima, who once headed the Commission on Human Rights (CHR).

READ: De Lima calls for inquiry into spate of drug killings 

Calida said De Lima was urging a congressional inquiry not in aid of legislation but for media mileage, turning the tables on De Lima for failing to curb the drug menace in the country during her stint as justice secretary.

For his part, Baguilat has filed House Resolution No. 61 urging the lower chamber to investigate the “spate of extrajudicial killings and/or summary executions of suspected violators of laws on illegal drugs and other suspected criminals.”

READ: Look into extrajudicial killings under Duterte, Congress pressed

Baguilat said since Duterte assumed office on June 30, at least 23 persons suspected of violating laws against illegal drugs were killed by law enforcers “under vague circumstances.”

He added that even before Duterte’s inauguration, at least 68 drug suspects were killed in police operations in the country from January 1 to June 15, and 25 more were killed from June 16 to 20, “demonstrating a shocking increase in police-perpetrated killings.”

Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police reported 22 suspected drug-related killings outside police operations from May 14 to June 30, Baguilat said.

Baguilat said police officers who were mandated to enforce the rule of law but resorting to summary killings are violating the constitutional right of suspected criminals.

BACKSTORY: Duterte vows to continue killing criminals ‘in accordance with law’

“The seemingly unchecked outbreak of extrajudicial killings executed by civil servants trusted by the people to enforce the law indicates a violation of the Constitution…,” Baguilat said.

Baguilat also said the extrajudicial killings represent a “deterioration of the rule of law, which can lead to people taking the law into their hands,” thereby leading the country toward the path of “lawlessness and anarchy.”

“There is therefore a clamor from the public and government officials alike to look into the disturbing trend of extrajudicial killings of suspected drug criminals,” Baguilat said.