FILE PHOTO: Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea. TOTO LOZANO/PRESIDENTIAL FILE PHOTO
Former Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea simply laughed off a suggestion that former President Rodrigo Duterte be summoned to the House of Representatives鈥� probe of his deadly war on drugs.
Medialdea, who was executive secretary during Duterte鈥檚 entire term, claimed to the House committee on human rights that he had no knowledge of the former leader鈥檚 antidrugs campaign that claimed more than 6,000 lives officially acknowledged to have been lost in police operations.
Although only 54 of these cases were found to have been questionable, Medialdea鈥攐ne of the country鈥檚 top lawyers upon his appointment as executive secretary鈥攄id not explain why only three deaths were successfully prosecuted in the Duterte administration鈥檚 six years in office.
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In a press conference on Friday, ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro and Kabataan Rep. Raoul Manuel said that if the Duterte administration touts the 鈥渘eutralization鈥� of thousands of drug suspects as an accomplishment, then he and his officials should have no problem answering to the committee.
鈥淩egardless of the existing references or memos or orders (about the implementation of the drug war) the real reference used by the Philippine National Police and other government agencies to implement 鈥極plan Tokhang鈥� was no less than [Duterte鈥檚] own pronouncements that drugs must be eradicated in the country within six months,鈥� Manuel said, referring to the knock-and-plead strategy used to identify drug suspects.
Echoed Castro: 鈥淎ll the numbers about the drug war鈥攚hether it was 6,000 or over 20,000鈥攃ame from the government agencies themselves and cannot be denied. That鈥檚 why I鈥檓 puzzled as to why [Salvador] Medialdea claims he had no knowledge of these things.鈥�
Manuel also took offense at Medialdea laughing off the prospect of Duterte being invited as a resource person to the hearings, which began last month as a belated legislative effort to pursue accountability for the drug war victims.
鈥淲hy is that funny?鈥� he asked. 鈥淚f they鈥檙e so proud of their own numbers that they killed 20,000 civilians in just two years, then why is it suddenly ludicrous for them to explain that?鈥�