FORMER President Rodrigo Duterte has “chickened out” of attending the 10th House Quad Comm hearing on illegal drugs and extrajudicial killings that were implemented during his administration.

House Majority Leader Manuel Jose “Mannix” Dalipe and House Assistant Majority Leaders Jay Khonghun of Zambales and Paolo Ortega of La Union lamented the failure of Duterte to face the Quad Comm.

In his letter to the committee, Duterte said he is not attending the House Quad Comm hearing because he has already extensively discussed and shared his knowledge in the Senate on the issue of EJK which claimed the lives of more than 20,000 poor and suspected drug personalities.

“Sa tingin namin, parang naduwag si dating Pangulong Duterte sa pagdalo sa Quad Comm hearing dahil takot siyang harapin at sagutin ang mas malalalim na katanungan ng mga miyembro ng Kamara at pamilya ng mga biktima ng EJKs na humihingi ng katarungan,” Dalipe said.

Khonghun said if the former President truly wanted the public to be informed about his bloody war on drugs, along with his admission that he encouraged law enforcers in Davao City to “manlaban” (fight back) to justify killings and address his “problem,” he should attend the hearings.

“Ang pag-amin ng dating Pangulo na responsable siya sa mga patayan at ang mga claim na may reward system sa kapulisan ay dapat imbestigahan nang malaliman dahil lumalabas na state-sponsored ang mga pagpatay sa mga low-level drug personalities,” Khonghun said.

In a letter dated November 5, 2024, Atty. Martin Delgra III, Duterte’s legal counsel, stated that after consulting with his client, Duterte respectfully “manifests that while he respects and recognizes the authority of the Quad Comm to conduct inquiries in aid of legislation, he cannot attend the public hearing.”

Reacting to Delgra’s letter, Ortega argued that Duterte backed out of the hearing likely to avoid intense questioning regarding his “bloody” anti-drug campaign, which they say targeted only low-level figures and ignored calls for investigations into allies such as Michael Yang and other alleged Chinese drug lords.

Quad Comm co-chairpersons Reps. Bienvenido Abante Jr. and Dan Hernandez have consistently voiced their stance that Duterte should be held accountable for the crime of “willful killing” under Section 6 of Republic Act No. 9851, also known as the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.

AUTHOR PROFILE

Jester P. Manalastas