Lagman on reimposition of death penalty: A deadly Christmas gift

Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, the main advocate of the reproductive health law and a staunch opponent of the death penalty, on Friday lashed out at Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez for the planned reimposition of the capital punishment.

In a text message, the Liberal Party lawmaker called the move to restore the death penalty before the Christmas break a “deadly Christmas gift.”

He made the reaction after Speaker Alvarez, in an interview with reporters in Tokyo during the official visit of President Rodrigo Duterte, said the Lower House would approve the controversial measure before Christmas break.

READ: House to approve death penalty bill before Christmas break 

Lagman said the move of Duterte’s staunch ally in Congress was consistent with the spate of extrajudicial killings of suspected drug criminals in the administration’s war on drugs.

“That projection is consistent with the alarming emergence of a culture of death and violence. It is a deadly Christmas gift,” Lagman said.

READ: Digong to lead Congress to restore death penalty

Lagman said he would attempt to block the move.He has opposed the reimposition of capital punishment for two decades.

Lagman was among the lawmakers who moved for the abolition of death penalty in 2006 under the administration of former president Gloria Arroyo.

“It took me almost 20 years to crusade for the abolition of the death penalty, which is anti-human rights, a non-deterrent and anti-poor. I will oppose the reimposition if it takes me another 20 years,” the veteran lawmaker said.

“We will derail the supermajority’s death penalty at all cost,” he added.

It was Speaker Alvarez who first filed the bill seeking to reimpose death penalty after Arroyo abolished capital punishment in 2006 for its failure to deter crime.

Alvarez filed the bill to reinstate the death penalty, pursuant to President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign promise of returning capital punishment against heinous criminals.

 READ: First bill in Congress seeks reinstatement of death penalty

Alvarez’s bill sought to reimpose the death penalty for heinous crimes listed under Republic Act 7659, including murder, plunder, rape, kidnapping and serious illegal detention, sale, use and possession of illegal drugs, carnapping with homicide, among others.

In the bill he co-authored with deputy speaker Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro, Alvarez said there is a need to reimpose the death penalty because “the national crime rate has grown to such alarming proportions requiring an all-out offensive against all forms of felonious acts.”

“Philippine society is left with no option but to deal with certain grievous offenders in a manner commensurate to the gravity, perversity, atrociousness and repugnance of their crimes,” according to the bill.

READ: ‘Death penalty back in one year’

Duterte won the elections on a campaign promise to restore the death penalty by hanging, even making a snide remark that the convicts’ head should be severed during the hanging. Alvarez said Congress would look into the cheapest way to restore the death penalty, either by firing squad, lethal injection, or by hanging. CDG/rga

READ: Death penalty: ‘The cheaper, the better’