Leila’s dilemma

“Her recent posturing betrays De Lima’s hypocrisy.

De Lima remained defiant and refused to enter any plea.

In his third State of the Nation Address (SoNA), President Rodrigo Duterte vowed not only to pursue his campaign against illegal drugs but also warned that it “will be as relentless and chilling” as it had begun.

He said he will not be dissuaded from continuing the war against illegal drugs by the protests, demonstrations and harsh criticisms, particularly from vociferous human rights advocates.

“Your concern is human rights, mine is human lives. The lives of our youth are being wasted and families are destroyed and all because of the chemicals called shabu, cocaine, cannabis and heroine,” the President said.

As if on cue, like the conditioned reflexes of Pavlov’s dogs, the President’s critics took no time to disparage the administration’s tough anti-drug policy.

One such critic is Sen. Leila de Lima, now confined in jail on charges of involvement in illegal drug trade, particularly the lucrative trafficking of shabu inside the National Bilibid Prison (NBP).

In her speech upon receipt of the Liberal International’s Prize for Freedom Award last 28 July, De Lima took a swipe at President Duterte’s SoNA by arguing that human lives and human rights are not opposites.

While no doubt a good sound bite for scoring media points, that statement deliberately distorts the President’s clear message: that when push comes to shove, he would rather save the lives of innocent people than those of the drug-crazed criminals who murder, rape and harm their victims.

The President’s directive for the implementation of the anti-drug campaign is solidly anchored not only on law, standard law enforcement procedures but also on respect for human rights: apprehend the suspects but don’t hesitate to use lethal force when lives are at stake.

Her recent posturing betrays De Lima’s hypocrisy as she is currently facing criminal charges over involvement in the illegal drug trade, particularly the lucrative trafficking of shabu inside the NBP during her stint as Justice secretary.

High-profile inmate Jaymee Sebastian testified at congressional hearings that he gave a total of P14 million on various occasions to De Lima, purportedly to fill her senatorial campaign kitty, with one directly given to the senator at the office of then Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director Franklin Bucayu.

Former BuCor officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos also testified that he delivered drug payola money to De Lima’s alleged bagman, her paramour and driver Ronnie Dayan.

The links between De Lima and the three men are clearly established. In fact, De Lima herself admitted that her erstwhile boyfriend recommended to her the appointment of the two BuCor officials.

De Lima tried to downplay the issue by claiming Dayan’s word played very little in her appointment of Bucayu and Ragos. She said it was normal for anyone close to her to make recommendations but the final decision rests on her.

The fact that she actually appointed the two betrays the paucity of her denials. While her romantic liaisons with Dayan is purely a personal matter, the appointment of officials to sensitive government posts is the public’s concern.

That her appointees Buyacu and Ragos admitted having facilitated, if not tolerated, the drug trade inside the NBP speak volumes about De Lima. Even more telling is that during the term of these two officials, drug trafficking inside the NBP flourished.

De Lima’s protestations of innocence fly amid the fact that on 23 February 2017 a warrant of arrest was issued by a Muntinlupa court against her and co-accused Ragos and Dayan after finding probable cause on drug-trading-related charges that allegedly went on at the NBP.

In her arraignment last 27 July, De Lima remained defiant and refused to enter any plea on grounds that she does not recognize the legitimacy and the validity of the charges.

However, what De Lima cannot deny is that the Supreme Court itself affirmed on 6 June the jurisdiction of the Muntinlupa court over her case and the validity of the warrant of arrest issued against her.

De Lima is now facing a difficult situation on how to sustain her self-proclaimed persona as law-abiding and human rights respecting official amid the drug-related criminal cases ranged against her.