DAVAO City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte clarified that he never ordered the police to kill anyone who is involved in illegal drugs.
"Kabalo mo, ang premise ana, kinahanglan sila mahibaw, mu-refer sila sa akong statement. Unsa may ilang imbestigahan nga kung [naa'y] nahitabo diha police unya miingon ang police nga... ako man to, wa man nako sila sugua (You know, they should know the premise here if they would refer to my statement. What would they investigate? If there would be an incident and then the police would say I told them to do it, I didn’t order them [to kill a drug pusher])," Duterte said on Tuesday, April 2, during the commemoration of the Sasa Wharf bombing.
Duterte stressed that he has not personally encountered any drug pushers.
"So far, nagbakasyon ra man ko, wa pa man ko nasugatan na pusher diha. [So] wa pa ko'y mapatay (I’m just vacationing, I didn’t encounter any drug pushers somewhere, that is why I haven’t killed any)," the mayor said.
It can be recalled that Duterte announced during the turnover ceremony at the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) Headquarters at Camp Leonor Domingo, in San Pedro Street on Friday, March 22 he would kill those who are actively involved in illegal drugs.
“Ugma, ugma dayon panghawa na mo diri, panghipos na mo sa inyong mga gamit, panghawa na mo. Kay kung di mo mohawa, kay og di mo moundang, pampatyon ta mo (Tomorrow, as immediate as tomorrow, get out of here, pack your things and get out! If you will not leave, if you will not stop, I will kill you),” Duterte said.
Seven drug users were killed from different barangays in the city a few hours after the mayor declared war against drugs.
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said in a statement that they are alarmed by Duterte’s statement.
The mayor, in response, said he won't stop them from conducting their investigation.
“Pag-imbestiga lang mo, okay man na. Pero I suggest kung mag-imbestiga na lang man mo tungod kay daghan man raid sa drugs dinhi sa Davao ug sa mga kaso, ask the City Prosecutor’s Office, kana na lang inyong buhaton, CHR man kaha mo? (Go on and investigate, that’s fine with me. But I suggest that if you conduct an investigation, since there are a lot of drug raids here in Davao and drug-related cases, ask the City Prosecutor’s Office. That’s what you should better do, you’re CHR, aren’t you?)” he said.
New York-based Human Rights Watch also expressed “deep concern” with the pronouncement of former president Rodrigo Duterte's son on dealing with the city's drug problem.
The former president had been known for his bloody "war on drugs" when he was still city mayor, which he also carried when elected as president.
This had prompted several investigations from CHR, and other human rights groups, including the United Nations’ International Criminal Court. RGL
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