Aguirre: Minors killed by addicts or by cops — what’s the difference?

What’s the difference between a minor killed by a drug addict and a minor killed by cops?

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II posed this question to the “groups politicizing” the death of 17-year-old Kian Delos Santos, as he maintained that the minor’s deaths in the hands of the cops was “blown out of proportion.”

“Noong patayin ‘yung limang tao sa bulacan may na-rape, may tatlong minors, bakit ni-isa walang dumalaw? Even Human Rights commissioner went to the wake of Kian yesterday,” Aguirre said during the Senate public order committee’s hearing on Delos Santos’s death on Thursday.

“Anong difference ng mga batang pinatay ng adik sa pinatay na bata ng mga pulis?” Aguirre said.

The Justice secretary he saw something “disproportionate” that these groups are protesting cops’ killing of Delos Santos and not the death of the family of five in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan, in which the suspect was a drug addict.

“I said this was blown out of proportion? Why? Because everybody, sinakyan na ng lahat. Lalong lalo na mga human rights group, ‘yung mga group na walang nakitang tama kay President Aquino… ay Duterte,” Aguirre said, eliciting laughter from the audience.

Aguirre was referring to former President Benigno Aquino III.

Senators Risa Hontiveros, Grace Poe, and Franklin Drilon then stressed to Aguirre that the police are state agents, whose duty was to protect the people.

“In the case of Kian, state agents took his life and I hope you see the difference there,” Drilon said. JE