Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte yesterday defended his drug war that killed thousands at a congressional inquiry that is taking place amid a deepening feud between his clan and incumbent leader Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“Do not question my policies because I offer no apologies, no excuses. I did what I had to do and whether you believe it or not, I did it for my country,” Duterte said at the senate probe. It was the first time the former leader showed up at an inquiry by lawmakers into his anti-drug campaign since his term ended in 2022.
Duterte said police had the right to protect themselves when their lives were at risk, repeating a justification for his deadly drug war that he had made during his term.
Photo: AP
“I and I alone take full legal responsibility,” he said.
The senate investigation also marked the first time the former leader came face to face with the drug war victims’ families, who maintained the innocence of their kin killed in police operations.
Philippine Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, a Duterte ally and former police chief who implemented the drug war, earlier called for the chamber’s own inquiry to counter an ongoing probe at the House of Representatives.?
Photo: EPA-EFE
“I am here to tell the truth, and as I do so, witness the web of lies come undone one thread at a time,” Dela Rosa said.
Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros said Duterte’s participation in the Senate probe is necessary, him being the “chief architect” of the drug war.
“Any investigation will be incomplete if he will not be questioned,” she added.
The 79-year old Duterte, who is running for mayor in southern Davao city at next year’s midterm elections, last week skipped a House hearing where Marcos allies are conducting extensive probes into alleged extrajudicial killings under his administration’s anti-narcotics crackdown. The drug war is also being investigated by the International Criminal Court for possible crimes against humanity.
The Duterte family’s ties with Marcos have frayed over policy differences, with the former president’s daughter, Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte earlier this month saying Marcos “doesn’t know how to be a president” in her sharpest attack yet on her 2022 campaign partner.
Dela Rosa on Friday described the House probe as a “fishing expedition” meant to crush Duterte’s allies ahead of next year’s and the 2028 presidential elections.
In one of the House committee hearings this month, a retired police officer confirmed the implementation of an alleged cash reward system for police who carried out extrajudicial killings under Duterte’s drug war. The ex-leader denied the allegations.
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