Former president Rodrigo Duterte admitted that he requested massive funds during his stint as chief executive to bankroll the so-called reward system of his administration’s anti-drug campaign.
“That’s correct. We have to spend money for operations, for intelligence,” Duterte told the House Quad Committee during its probe into alleged extrajudicial killings (EJK) of his drug war on Wednesday.
Duterte’s statement follows a video clip presented before the committee wherein Senator Grace Poe, in a previous upper house hearing, asked then-Philippine National Police (PNP) chief and now-Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa about the monetary incentives.
The reward offered to both civilian informants and police providing tips on the whereabouts of drug lords amounts to as high as P5 million.
"The police only have their salary, including equipment, office materials. But you if say that the police have their own fund for an operation day-to-day to follow up cases with criminals? No sir. You really need to fund the police,” Duterte said in Filipino.
In 2016, Duterte asked Congress for a whopping P2.5 billion in confidential and intelligence funds (CIF). The figure was five times higher than the P500 million secret funds of his predecessor, the late Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III, in his last year of office in 2015.
During the course of his presidency, Duterte’s CIF continued to drastically increase with P4.5 billion spent during his last term in 2022. Although he shared the spending with his successor, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who assumed office in June of the same year.
Duterte, however, refused to divulge the in-depth details of the expenditure given its confidential nature.
“I am protecting the interest of the republic when I dispensed confidential funds to the military and police. Do not make me account for something which I cannot do legally. That is not allowed by law. I am prohibited from doing it,” an irked Duterte pointed out.
Previously, the quad comm announced that they would determine whether Duterte tapped its intel expenses to finance a supposed cash reward given to the police for killing drug suspects.
Retired police colonel Royina Garma — Duterte’s alleged trusted aide — previously claimed under oath that Duterte’s drug war involves monetary rewards ranging from P20,000 to P1 million, depending on the prominence of the target.
Garma alleged that the operation was modeled after the “Davao template,” which was purportedly developed during Duterte's tenure as Davao City mayor.
Duterte, however, denied that the incentives intended to encourage police to kill drug suspects.
"That is forbidden, sir, because you are buying people's lives. Even without the laws, that would be a violation of God,” Duterte asserted.
Despite mounting threats of accountability, the former president insisted that his war on drugs was “successful” because it “minimized” the proliferation of drugs.
“I just did what I had to do in my time whether it is really acceptable to all or none at all. Now, if you are asking for accountability, I admit it. File a case and I will go to jail willingly if you could prove the case,” the former president added.
Earlier in the hearing, Duterte said he was not scared and even dared the International Criminal Court to immediately start its long-delayed investigation into his alleged crimes against humanity.