Philippine government agencies, and not the International Criminal Court (ICC), should investigate the allegation that cash rewards were handed out by the Duterte administration to cops who killed drug suspects during the war on drugs.
Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra made his position known on Monday in reaction to former police colonel and ex-Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina Garma’s exposé before the House Quad Committee last Friday.
“It would even be better if all pieces of evidence gathered from the congressional committee hearings are turned over to our own executive agencies for appropriate investigation and prosecution,” Guevarra said.
“The quad committee, on its own, may turn it over to the Department of Justice/National Bureau of Investigation or to the Office of the Ombudsman for case buildup or further investigation,” he added.
Guevarra noted that “these are the agencies that have the mandate to build on the findings of congressional committees with respect to criminal matters.” He said the Office of the Solicitor General would come in much later.
On Sunday, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said his office would proceed to a case buildup based on the revelations made during the House hearings.
During the quad committee hearings, Garma recounted that in 2016, former President Rodrigo Duterte met with her in Davao City to discuss the nationwide implementation of the “Davao model” of the war against illegal drugs.
The former PCSO official, who was acquainted with Duterte after having served as a police station commander in Davao City, explained that the Davao model “involved three levels of payment or rewards.”
‘Coplan’
“First is the reward if the suspect is killed. Second is the funding of planned operations (or Coplans). Third is the refund of operational expenses,” she said.
The government had put the number of those killed in anti-narcotics operations during the Duterte administration at about 7,000, but critics and international groups countered that the actual number was closer to 30,000.
The ICC had started a probe into the extrajudicial killings, but Duterte had withdrawn recognition of the body, saying the country had a fully functioning justice system and there was no need for the ICC to interfere.
The ICC probe continues, however.
Meanwhile, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remilla said the government will not extend special treatment to anyone proven to be involved in the alleged cash reward system.
However, he said, those mentioned in the congressional hearings, including former government officials and police officers, are “innocent until proven guilty.”
“We must understand that we are innocent until proven guilty, so we should not judge them based solely on the testimonies,” he noted.
Remulla stressed that everyone will face the full consequences of the law. He said the Department of the Interior and Local Government will wait for the full revelations and conclusions of the investigation before taking any action.
“The testimonies are not over yet. As far as I am concerned, we will wait until all the testimonies are in. We will wait until the appropriate actions are taken. The initial work is already underway, but we will wait until Congress finishes before we act,” he said.
Meanwhile, Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil said the PNP has created a committee to investigate Garma’s allegations before the House of Representatives.
“We have asked former chiefs to provide statements, as Colonel Garma had indicated that former PNP chiefs were informed about the war on drugs. We need to take their statements to understand where we can start our investigation,” Marbil told reporters.