Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel hit the Philippine National Police after yet another killing involving a councilor in Puerto Galera, Mindoro and his teenage son.
“This is yet another murder by the now usual modus operandi of motorcycle-riding gunmen. Where is the peace and order that Dela Rosa says the people are ungrateful for?” Pimentel said.
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His remarks came after two unidentified men on a motorcycle shot dead Councilor Melchor Arago, 52, and his son, Kenneth, 15.
Dela Rosa drew flak from lawmakers and netizens after he called drug war critics “ingrates” for not appreciating the peace and order brought about by the Duterte government’s campaign against illegal drugs.
“You can criticize us to the high heavens but I can tell you straight sa inyong mga mata, ‘yung mga critics sabihan ko kayo, ingrato kayo. Alam kong nakikinabang kayo sa peace and order na idinulot sa ating war on drugs,” Dela Rosa said on October 3.
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“Prangka lang ako: ingrato kayo. Sige lang, you can criticize us, wala akong problema….Ako naman, bebuwelta ako sa inyo: ingrato ka, mga anak mo sarap pumapasok sa eskuwelahan na walang kaba, walang takot dahil bihira na ‘yung krimen sa kalsada dahil sa war on drugs, tapos ngayon tinitira ‘nyo kami,” dela Rosa added.
The Senate president urged Dela Rosa and the PNP to shape up as “criminals are being emboldened by what they see as the incompetence of the PNP in catching them.”
He added that the police force needs modernization of tools and proper training to further pursue the goals of the war against drugs.
“The Filipino people deserve a modern, professional, and capable police force. Right now, the PNP is none of the above. We need to take radical action to change this state of affairs,” Pimentel said.
Deputy Minority Leader and Kabayan Rep. Harry Roque also responded to dela Rosa’s “ingrates” remarks.
Before you call your critics ingrates, you should first produce the inquest proceeding reports of all the deaths committed in the PNP’s war on drugs. Without these reports, the peace and order you claim people are enjoying now is highly suspect,” Roque said.
“The report sent to my office included the case of South Korean businessman Jee Ick Joo case, where four police officers were involved, and the much earlier Wheel Torture case, which involved six police officers,” he added.
“There is no indication in the report that any of these 3,906 or so deaths arising from drug operations underwent inquest proceeding,” he further said.
And just like the other lawmakers, Roque said that public servants like him and Dela Rosa should deliver their duty without expecting gratitude from the people they are serving.
“Public officers should not expect gratitude for a job well done because it is their duty to perform their jobs to the best of their abilities,” he added.
Sources: ( philstar.com , philstar.com )
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