IT WAS “not surprising” that Vice President Leni Robredo is once again “demonizing” President Rodrigo Duterte’s crackdown on illegal drugs, Malacañang said Thursday, October 24.
In a statement, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo lambasted Robredo for telling Duterte to abandon his administration’s anti-narcotics drive, which she claimed is “not working” to stop the drug proliferation in the country.
“The Palace is not surprised at all by the recent commentary of Vice President Ma. Leonor Robredo when she again demonized the President and this administration's campaign against illegal drugs by referring to the same as a ‘failed drug war,’” Panelo said.
Panelo’s reaction was in response to Reuters’ exclusive report titled, “Robredo says time for Duterte to stop ‘failed’ drug war.”
In the report published on Wednesday, October 23, the Vice President was quoted as saying: “We ask ourselves, ‘Why is this still happening?’ The President has already made very serious threats to drug syndicates, to drug lords... and yet, it’s still very prevalent, so obviously, it’s not working.”
Panelo said Robredo’s latest remarks are “unquestionably bereft of factual basis and devoid of recognition of the successes that the war on illegal drugs has reaped.”
“She may not realize it but she is echoing the lies and black propaganda of some of her colleagues in the political opposition, which to say the least is unfortunate, especially since she was part of the Cabinet when the government’s program against the drug menace was launched,” he said.
“The Office of the President therefore suggests to our former colleague in the Cabinet to detach herself from the critics and detractors of the war on drugs whose false narratives against it have been repudiated by a majority of Filipinos,” Panelo added.
Panelo said the Palace expressed hope that the Vice President would do “more active consultation” with her fellow Filipinos instead of “totally relying on the insights given by her advisers whose ideas contradict the realities on the ground.”
He also lectured her that the continued presence of drug personalities in the country does not mean that Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign is a failure.
“She is better off without them. She should rely more on her motherly instincts and gut-feel as a lawyer,” he said.
“The fact that the drug cartel has not been totally destroyed does not mean that the fight against it has failed. It only means that the extent and magnitude of the drug problem, which is the result of neglect and failure by past administrations to arrest or curb it, is monstrously enormous hence the Administration has not wavered in the vigorous battle it has waged against it,” he added.
Panelo said the Palace was willing to welcome Robredo’s criticisms, only if these are “constructive” and “based on facts and the law.”
He stressed that a “disinformation campaign and an abuse of the freedom of speech and of expression, and unproductive to the mature evolution of a democratic society and a hindrance to its progress” were totally unacceptable.
He said Robredo should be aware of the “screaming uncontroverted facts” that over one million drug personalities have voluntarily surrendered since July 2016; over 42,000 villages have been declared drug-free; and over P35 billion worth of drugs, chemicals and laboratory equipment have already been seized and dismantled.
He added that more than a hundred police scalawags and less than 5,000 drug lords and drug pushers have already been killed, “making the people safe from them.”
“It is a continuing wonderment why VP Leni has ignored the fact that the majority of our people have recognized and have given their thumbs-up to the policy of the Chief Executive on this issue, with more than eight out of 10 Filipinos, or 82 percent, expressing satisfaction with his anti-illegal drug campaign,” Panelo said. (NASE)