Punchline
Untold stories about war on drugs
By Ermin Garcia Jr.
BEFORE we move on to 2017, I need to point out serious misimpressions being conveyed about drug of war by supposed human rights groups and the Catholic Church.
Two weeks ago, Rappler came out with a summary of the war on drugs, focusing on alleged victim of EJK.
It reported that 6,095 died as of December 14, 2016 out of which 2,102 suspected drug personalities were killed in police operations while 3,993 were killed gangland style.
Then it went on to compare the 2,977 persons killed during martial law; the 2,977 killed in the September 11 attacks in USA and 2,500 killed in Thailand’s war on drugs.
Clearly and simply, the message being conveyed is: people are being killed with impunity in the Philippines within six months of the Duterte administration, that the war is about extra-judicial killings (EJK) and bloodshed.
While I don’t cast aspersion on the figures offered by Rappler, the report was peppered with one-sided view of the war, and, therefore, extremely biased against the Duterte administration.
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Why Rappler and some in mainstream media refuse to complete the story is quite unnerving, to say the least. These are meant to debunk verbal claims that many Filipinos feel much safer today than at anytime in the past.
Here are the important stats dug up and collated by the research staff of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano.
As of December 14, there were 908,244 drug users and pushers across the country that surrendered and willingly submitted to be processed by the police for intel purposes. Processing those who surrendered enabled the law enforcement agencies to identify the players and protectors of the country’s shrewd enemies in the illegal drug trade.
Get this fact! The 908,244 that surrendered identified at least one or two suppliers/protectors for their illegal use or trade! That translates to almost 1,816,488 that were implicated, and are likely to implicate more after they are subjected to Operation Tokhang! So wonder no more why 2,102 suspected drug personalities have been killed gangland style by those who fear being implicated as well.
(Note: Then ex-DOJ Sec. Leila de Lima and her ilk never cited the number of persons killed by hitmen-riding-in-tandem whom the PNoy administration refused to describe as EJK. Today, she conveniently cries today that the persons killed by hitmen–riding in-tandem are suddenly victims of EJK.)
Enough of self-serving crusaders.
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UNTOLD TRUTH. So let’s look at the figures that matter to our peaceful communities. Because of the war on drugs, police data across the country revealed that over the six -month period, there were 34,741 less crimes committed!
To the relief of perpetually worried parents, there were 501 less rape cases committed compared to the same period in 2015.
There were less 14,623 theft cases at home, and 5,039 robbery cases less!
These statistics validated by families across the country who finally feel safe from the clutches of drug addicts and crime syndicates.
Only those who fear for their lives obviously realize that their time of reckoning for all the hurt and miseries they brought upon hundreds of families in their respective villages is now. They have no choice but to fight back at arresting officers.
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Here’s another misplaced advocacy.
The Catholic Bishops of the Conference opted to simply remind citizenry about the 7th Commandment “Thou shalt not kill,” and translated it to localize the advocacy – “Huwag kang papatay” for effect. Sadly, it was all the good bishops decided to do, to proclaim it repeatedly in homilies and tarpaulins across the dioceses. It was all they were willing to commit to counter the Duterte administration’s alleged EJKs.
The bishops gingerly moved to veer away from the direction taken by the Dumaguete Diocese. The diocese, it will be recalled, donated 14 hectares of land in Negros Oriental, for a drug rehabilitation facility to serve the immediate rehabilitation of the thousands of drug addicts and pushers who had surrendered to the Philippine National Police (PNP) in unprecedented numbers.
Only the Dumaguete Diocese appears to have hit the nail on the head, on what the war on drugs is all about, that it is about healing and protecting the victims of the illegal drug trade, and their families.
The diocese realized that government did not have the infrastructure and resources to launch massive rehab efforts. So it showed the way how to commit to an advocacy.
But most of the bishops did not want to go that far with him in spite of the apt response of Fr. Ben Eric Lozada’s, diocesan clergy president: “The donation is a concrete response of the Church” to the government’s ongoing campaign to rid the streets of illegal drugs.
To up their ante, so to speak, the CBCP appealed additionally to church groups to help in the rehab efforts, careful not to commit their billions of resources for the healing of their flock.
Leave it to our bishops to pay grand lip service to the country’s problem that wreaked havoc on the lives of millions of families.
Will we ever hear CBCP leadership follow the example of the Dumaguete diocese?
In 2017 perhaps? I sincerely hope so.
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UNDERSTANING DU30. I have patiently watched and listened to President Duterte since the campaign, wanting to understand who and what he is. Here’s my take of him so far, and I share it here in the hope that those who are either biting their nails or feel nauseated by his oft repeated ‘kill’ statements when talking about the war on drugs will learn to relax:
- When he says “I will kill you,” he wants the drug and criminal syndicates to know that he won’t hesitate to do it himself. The ‘killer-talk’ is the only language that the syndicates understand.
- When he tells the police: “I will be responsible for you.” he wants them to know that his orders are legal.
- When he issues contradicting statements, Ex.: “I don’t want them (Marcos et al.) jailed” then follows it with: “If you (NBI) have the evidence I will not interfere.,” he means “Trust me!”
- When he reminds his audience to address simply as “Mayor of the Philippines,” he’s reiterating that he’s not enamored with the presidency and its perks. He insists he can live and move on without the ‘Mr. President’ title. How many times have we heard him say – “I am willing to risk my life, my integrity, my presidency!”?
- Finally, when he says “Putangina,” he wants us to know he is exasperated, frustrated, annoyed and incensed at the issue, not the person.
And if you want him to be the smooth-talking respectable, likable guy for a change, perish the thought. He won’t ever be what we want him to be because he knows that his ways as a mayor worked wonders for him. He was never president to know what worked.
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