Justice Undersecretary Raul T. Vasquez showcased the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) most notable accomplishments for the previous year.
In a one-hour special TV guesting hosted by State-run People’s Television Channel 4 (PTV-4) during the program “Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon” with the theme “2024 Performance Report: Department of Justice,” Undersecretary Vasquez presented yesterday, 22 January 2025, the numerous major achievements of the DoJ during the previous year under the leadership of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” C. Remulla.
Pursuant to Secretary Remulla’s commitment of delivering real justice for all in real time, Undersecretary Vasquez discussed the key victories of the DoJ last year in upholding the Rule of Law.
One of the milestones worth underscoring is the improved conviction rating of the National Prosecution Service (NPS) from 2023 to 2024 guided by game-changing issuances and policies spearheaded by Secretary Remulla such as the signing of Department Circular No. 015 dated 16 July 2024 or the DoJ-NPS Rules on Summary Investigation and Expedited Preliminary Investigation which prescribes the procedures in the investigation of crimes where the penalty prescribed by law is six years or below, as well as the full implementation of Department Circular Nos. 008, 008-A, 016 and 020 series of 2023 which require that only cases with prima facie “reasonable certainty of conviction” are to be filed in court.
Jail decongestion efforts, paramount regard for human rights, intensified campaign against Online Sexual Abuse and Exploitation of Children and the unwavering crusade of the DoJ in leading the fight against modern-day slavery by attaining for the 9th consecutive year a Tier 1 ranking in the US Trafficking in Persons Report are the other key accomplishments presented by Undersecretary Vasquez.
“Ang importante kasi diyan, we are not here to make people suffer in imprisonment, hindi eh. Yan ang number one guidance natin — ang vision natin ay ang rule of law sa lahat: ang pantay at parehas na pagsugpo ng kriminalidad, pag-implement ng ating batas regardless of your stature in life,” Undersecretary Vasquez highlighted.
More importantly, the success of the “bloodless drug war” of the present administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. was also attributed to the DoJ highlighting the paradigm shift of the government’s illegal drug crackdown from purely law enforcement to a more humanitarian approach by treating the problem of illegal drugs as a “medical concern” which requires stringent measures in remedying the problem from its root cause.
“Yung approach is it is a health issue and at the same time it is a law enforcement issue. Hindi na masyado yung focus ay law enforcement na kailangan kamay na bakal parati,” the undersecretary stressed.
For the year 2025, Undersecretary Vasquez also vowed to take major strides in strengthening the DoJ’s fight against cybercrime by conducting advanced technological and forensic trainings for its personnel and law enforcement units, as well as improving the collaboration efforts among government agencies and those under the Judiciary.