EDITORIAL - Why the sudden interest?

Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte recently filed a resolution seeking a congressional inquiry into the reported extrajudicial killings (EJK’s) in the country over the past 25 years.

Yes, you read that right.

“Let us look at the totality, the whole picture, where we can see that the human rights violations have been perennial threats against a significant number of Filipinos for several decades now,” the congressman said in his official Facebook page.

This is actually a good call because many EJKs still unsolved. Even until now EJK’s are still a thing, according to Carlos Conde of Human Rights Watch. He said that in fact they seem to have “peaked” after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assumed office.

However, this is also weird to be coming from a Duterte considering that Congressman Duterte’s father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, has been linked to EJK’s even before he became president and launched his bloody war against drugs. In fact, his father gained the moniker “The Punisher” because of his alleged involvement with EJK’s when he was still Davao City mayor.

So why this sudden interest in EJK’s? Is it out of a sudden thirst to bring justice to thousands of families still asking for it? Is it an attempt to draw at tention away from his father and bring more people to be held accountable for EJK’s throughout the past quarter century? Is it a move to ward off International Criminal Court investigators after his father?

What he is asking for might actually backfire and put his father in trouble. If his resolution sees the light of day and with his father being just president a few scant years ago, certainly within the past 25 years, it is possible that former president Duterte will be called upon to answer questions during a Senate hearing. And not just for the EJK’s when he became president but also when he was still mayor.

And by then the former chief executive will no longer be president but an ordinary citizen --unless he does run and win as a senator.

Is this what Congressman Duterte really wants?

Perhaps we should just sit back and watch what happens.