MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. should furnish the International Criminal Court (ICC) with copies of the sworn statements of retired police chief Royina Garma and self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa detailing cases of drug-related extrajudicial killings, a human rights lawyer said.
In a statement, Neri Colmenares said on Saturday, October 12, that the ICC is “in the best position” to prosecute former President Rodrigo Duterte and his subordinates for the bloody war on drugs, which resulted in the deaths of around 30,000 Filipinos as recorded by human rights groups.
Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief of the Duterte administration, was among those named in the ICC’s investigation.
“He should turn over the Garma and Espinosa testimonies to the ICC to ensure prosecution of Duterte and Dela Rosa,” Colmenares said.
What did Garma and Espinosa say?
On October 11, the House quadcom held its eighth hearing on the EJKs committed during the Duterte administration.
During the session, two resource persons, particularly Garma and Espinosa, identified individuals involved in the former president’s nationwide drug war.
Espinosa implicated Duterte and Dela Rosa, who is known as Oplan Tokhang’s architect.
He said that it was Dela Rosa who threatened him to link Sen. Leila De Lima and businessman Peter Lim to the illegal drug trade by confessing to the public that he was a drug trafficker himself.
Upon learning this, Colmenares urged the Department of Justice to file charges against Dela Rosa for “grave coercion” or “grave threats” made towards Espinosa.
Dela Rosa has repeatedly denied Espinosa’s testimony, asserting that it was the DOJ that handled the illegal drug case against De Lima. He even went so far as to threaten to punch Espinosa the next time they would meet.
“This kind of attitude is not only a violation of the independence of legislative inquiries, but also shows his penchant to use violence when he disagrees with another. Just like his boss Duterte,” Colmenares said.
Asked if Espinosa believes that Duterte ordered the killing of his father, Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa, in 2016, Espinosa confirmed that he does.
“We saw on TV that the former president was saying he would kill all those on the narco list. So, as I understand it, he really ordered the killing of my father,” Espinosa said in Filipino.
RELATED: Kerwin Espinosa: Bato Dela Rosa forced me to confess, implicate De Lima in drug trade
Meanwhile, Garma also mentioned Duterte and Go, who served as his executive assistant and personal aide.
She confessed to lawmakers that the former president called her in May 2016 seeking her help in implementing the “Davao Model” nationwide, or the reward system that compensated police officers for every drug suspect they killed.
According to Garma, the funding and execution of the Davao Model was spearheaded by former National Police Commission (Napolcom) Commissioner Edilberto Leonardo.
In her affidavit, she said that Leonardo kept Go informed, providing updates on summary reports of those killed and the names of individuals added to the narco list. This was also for the alleged reimbursement of operational expenses for individuals killed.
The cash rewards, she explained, could range from as low as P20,000 to as high as P1 million, based on a “bracketing system” categorizing individuals involved in the illegal drug trade, such as traffickers, pushers and chemists.
RELATED: Royina Garma: Duterte sought my help for nationwide drug war reward system
What are lawmakers saying?
During the hearing, Rep. Raoul Manuel (Kabataan Partylist) noted Garma’s unapologetic demeanor, as she struggled to provide a straightforward yes or no answer when asked whether innocent lives were lost in the drug war.
“Even now, it seems like there’s still no remorse at all. The victims’ families are right in front of her, yet she still won’t own up,” Manuel said in Filipino.
Manuel asked Colmenares if Garma was among the individuals to be investigated by the ICC. Colmenares responded that she could be, as the ICC’s preliminary examination covers regional, provincial and city police units.
Duterte appointed Garma as Cebu City’s police chief in 2018. She previously served as a PNP official in Davao City.
“They can also be held accountable at the ICC for command responsibility, which is a crime under command responsibility, for their failure or refusal to investigate killings [that occurred] during their watch in police operations,” Colmenares said.
If that is the case, Manuel said that Garma should be held accountable for the killings that occurred during the war on drugs.
For neophyte lawmakers, Rep. Jefferson Khonghun (Zambales, 1st District) and Rep. Paolo Ortega V (La Union, 1st District), Garma’s testimony is just “the tip of the iceberg.”
“This testimony definitely carries with it much credibility, most especially if other witnesses, including documentary evidence, will corroborate whatever Garma may have to say as a matter of public record,” Khonghun said in a statement.
Ortega added the joint committee’s probe into drug-related EJKs has yet to determine the veracity of allegations made by Garma and Espinosa.
The House committee has invited Leonardo’s subordinates, as identified by Garma in her affidavit, who assisted in implementing the cash-for-killings system.
Lawmakers have also invited the inmate who claimed that Espinosa’s father begged for his life before being shot by former police chief inspector Leo Laraga, as well as Laraga himself.
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