MANILA, Philippines (Updated 3:23 p.m.) — The House joint committee has invited former President Rodrigo Duterte, along with senators Bong Go and Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, to the next hearings on the drug war’s extrajudicial killings.
Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Surigao del Norte, 2nd District), who chairs the House quadcom, confirmed on Tuesday, October 15, they have sent invitations to Duterte, Go and Dela Rosa.
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In an interview with NewsWatch Plus, Barbers said the invitation was actually made during the quadcom’s second or third public hearing.
“An invitation was already sent to him before. If I'm not mistaken, it was for the second or third hearing of the quad. Invitations were sent not only to former President Duterte but also to Senator Bato and Senator Bong Go,” he said in Filipino.
In an earlier statement, Rep. Dan Fernandez (Santa Rosa, Lone District) and Rep. Bienvenido Abante (Manila, 6th District) said the quadcom’s investigation on EJKs is a “continuing invitation” for Duterte.
Fernandez is the chairperson of the House Committee on Public Order and Safety, while Abante chairs the Committee on Human Rights. These are two committees under the House mega panel.
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No need for attendance
If Duterte attends the public hearings, Barbers said they will be “honored by his presence.” Should he decide not to attend, the quadcom chair said that his decision will be respected.
“But again, whatever their decision is, as far as the invitation is concerned, we will respect that,” Barbers said.
Duterte has yet to provide an official response or acknowledgment of the House’s invitation.
Meanwhile, the solon said “inter-parliamentary courtesy” may be extended to Go and Dela Rosa if they have no intention of attending the hearings.
This means the senators will not be pressured or forced to attend the hearings as they are also members of Congress.
However, Barbers stressed the invitation is an opportunity for Go and Dela Rosa to respond to the allegations made by several resource persons who said the two were involved in executing Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.
“As for the senators, of course, their names were mentioned. We want to give them a chance to respond to the allegations against them so that we can be fair. We are not favoring anyone, we are not taking sides,” the lawmaker said in Filipino.
If the three attend the quadcom’s hearings, Barbers said there won’t be any “grilling” because lawmakers “do not have the capacity to do that.”
“We will only allow the exchange of ideas and elevate the level of discourse regarding the subject matters we are discussing,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino.
He explained that House lawmakers could only source ideas on how to improve existing legislation or propose new legislation from the hearings.
Barbers cited House Bill 10986 or the Anti-Extrajudicial Killing Act, which the joint committee filed on October 11. The bill proposes to criminalize EJKs and provide compensation for the victims’ loved ones.
RELATED: Lawmakers file bills to criminalize EJKs, ban POGOs
Drug war is Duterte's legacy but...
In an ambush interview on Monday, October 14, Go told reporters that Congress applauded Duterte whenever he spoke of the war on drugs.
He asked in Filipino, “Why is he being blamed for it now? Didn’t the people benefit from it?”
Asked about his comment on Go’s reaction to the explosive testimonies alleging his and Duterte’s involvement, Barbers said he “never shifted his appreciation” of the war on drugs.
Until now, he lauds the former president’s declaration of a “true war on drugs,” saying the campaign should be continued as it closed down several shabu laboratories.
“I still believe that this war on drugs should continue, but not at the expense of taking the lives of our fellow citizens,” he said in Filipino.
While Barbers recognized that EJKs happened during the drug war, he said there were police officers and individuals who abused their power and not all of them could be connected to Duterte.
“Those abusers, how many thousands were involved? Are they all connected to the former president? Probably not. That is abuse by other officials and of the Philippine National Police,” Barbers said in Filipino.
"Hindi ko naman sinabi na si dating pangulo ang gumawa niyan. Ang sinasabi ko lang marami po tayong EJK na nangyari in the guise of the war on drugs. At hindi ibig sabihin niyan ay lahat si Presidente Duterte ang may kasalanan," he added.
(I'm not saying that the former president did that. I'm just saying we have several EJKs in the guise of the war on drugs. And it doesn't mean that all of it is the fault of President Duterte.)
Resource persons interrogated at the quadcom’s hearings have implicated Duterte, Go and Dela Rosa as key players in the drug war’s EJKs.
Allegations suggest that Duterte instructed high-ranking police officers to reward those who killed a drug suspect. Go was named as the public official who had received direct updates on the EJKs for reimbursement of operations.
Meanwhile, Dela Rosa is being accused of implicating former Sen. Leila de Lima, a fierce critic of Duterte’s drug war, in the illegal drug trade.
Both Go and Dela Rosa denied the allegations made against them.
Go served as Duterte’s special assistant to the president, while Dela Rosa was the PNP chief who enforced the war on drugs.