SENATOR Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa expressed that he did not regret his role in the War on Drugs campaign during his stint as the Philippine National Police Chief.
The senator addressed supporters present during the 80th birthday of former President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday, March 28, at Roxas Avenue here.
“Wala ko nagmahay tungod gihimo namo ni President Duterte ang war on drugs, dili para kami makakwarta, dili para kami modato. Gihimo namo ang war on drugs, unang-una para masalbar ang mga kabataan sa droga (I don’t regret it because what President Duterte and I did in the war on drugs was not to enrich ourselves. We launched the war on drugs, first to save the youth),” he said.
He stressed that the country was on the verge of becoming a narco-state and the war on drugs campaign was the way to suppress it from happening.
“Our country was on the verge of becoming a narco-state. Duna nay probinsya nga kontrolado na sa mga drug lord, sila na ang magdesisyon, kontrolado na tungod sa ilang kwarta (Some provinces were under control of the drug lords. They were the ones making decisions because they had money)” he added.
Dela Rosa described himself as the number two accused in the investigation of the International Criminal Court on Duterte’s drug war as he served as PNP chief between July 2016 and April 2018. Police claimed that around 7,000 died, but critics put the number at 30,000.
Meanwhile, the ICC only listed 43 murder charges during Duterte’s time as the Philippine president and Davao City mayor. Defenders explained that the small number was only a representative sample of the extent of the former president’s crimes.
The senator earlier said in reports he is considering courses of action, yet “not surrendering” is not part of his plan.
In the concluding part of his message he asked the supporters to pray for the safety of FPRRD and the executive secretary Salvador Medialdea who is currently in The Hague, Netherlands for the proceedings of the trial.
“Atong iampo nga unta atong presidente ug executive secretary nga unta tagaan silag maayong panglawas, labtik sa paghunahuna ug igong katakos para malusutan nila ang pagsulay nga ilang giatubang sa ilang kinabuhi karon (Let’s pray for our president and executive secretary for better health, mental clarity, more fortitude to overcome these challenges in their lives now),” he stressed.
Dela Rosa did not drop names during the speech, but he said, “It is very clear who sent FPRRD to be detained in ICC,” to which the supporters shouted in chorus, “Marcos bangag!”
The birthday celebration gathered an estimated 300,000 crowd consisting of Davao City supporters and neighboring cities and provinces.
