Former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office general manager Royina Garma on Friday told a House inquiry how then-President Rodrigo Duterte asked her when she was still a police official to look for an officer who will implement the Davao model of the war on drugs on a national scale—one in which rewards are given to the killing of drug suspects.
“During our meeting, he requested that I locate a Philippine National Police (PNP) officer or operative who is a member of the Iglesia Ni Cristo, indicating that he needed someone capable of implementing the War on Drugs on a national scale, replicating the Davao model,” Garma told the House QuadComm.
“This Davao Model referred to the system involving payments and rewards. The Davao Model involves three levels of payments or rewards. First is the reward if the suspect is killed. Second is the funding of planned operations (or COPLANS). Third is the refund of operational expenses,” she added tearfully.
Garma said the meeting took place in May 2016, weeks before Duterte was to take his oath as president of the country on June 30.
The former chief of police of Davao and Cebu also mentioned the names of Senator Christopher “Bong” Go and National Police Commission commissioner Edilberto Leonardo as among those involved in the implementation of the campaign.
“Rewards were only given for killings, while for arrests, ony the funding of the COPLAN and a refund for the expenses was given,” Garnma said.
Senior Deputy Speaker Dong Gonzales of Pampanga later asked Garma if she was forced to execute such an affidavit since she was in tears the whole time she was reading the four-page affidavit.
Garma said she executed the affidavit willingly, and that she was in tears due to complicated emotions.
“Wala po [pumilit], Mr. Chair. It took me one week to make some reflections. I realized that the truth will always set us free,” Garma said.
“It is normal that when you speak the truth, you cannot please everybody. At least, I will be able to contribute to make this country a better place to live for our children,” she added.
Duterte and other top officials of the Duterte administration are already being investigated by the International Criminal Court in connection with alleged commission of crimes against humanity for systematic drug war deaths in police operations during his tenure.
These deaths reached around 6,000 based on police records, but human rights groups contend that the deaths reached as much as 30,000, including vigilante killings, due to Duterte’s policy.
The former Chief Executive and the Duterte administration’s officials, however, has denied that killing people at whim is a policy, if not insisted that the Philippines is not under ICC jurisdiction due to Manila’s unilateral withdrawal from the Rome Statute in March 2019. —NB, GMA Integrated News
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