(Eagle News) – President Rodrigo Duterte announced that even the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) would be barred from conducting illegal drug operations, saying he had already lost his trust in the agency.
He also said that he was going to sign an executive order that would elevate the problem of illegal drugs into a “national security threat” so that the military could legally come into the picture and suppress it.
During a speech at the 38th national convention of the Philippine Association of Water Districts in Davao City on Thursday, the President reiterated his previous pronouncement that he is authorizing only the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to conduct the government’s war against drugs.
“I will still have the write the proclamation or E.O. (Executive Order), and raise the issue of drugs as a national security threat so that they can call on the Armed Forces to assist. So yung iba in the meantime, there will be a cleansing purge sa Crame and sa NBI,” Mr. Duterte said.
Earlier, he had already abolished all anti-drug units of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
A dismayed President Duterte said the PNP is “rotten to the core.”
“May I remind the public that when I ran, when I was campaigning, I made the statement that I have to fix the police because it is rotten to the core. I made that statement when I was campaigning. I just repeated it,” he said.
He said he already knew this at the start of his assumption into office which was why he assigned his former chief of police in Davao City, now Director General Ronald dela Rosa, to head the PNP, because he has my trust and confidence.
“Kasi ang police ang pulis talaga, it’s rotten. Kaya nga when I came in I had to fire several generals,” he said. He also again cited the involvement of retired police general like former General Vicente Loot who is now mayor of Daanbantayan, Cebu, who was among the five police generals the President had earlier named
He reiterated that the PNP should refrain from engaging in any illegal drug operations, and the NBI too would not be able to enforce drug laws.
“NBI kasali na kayo diyan, kasi wala na akong tiwala sa inyo,” he said.
He said that at the start of his presidency, he really thought he could finish the drug war in six months. But then his only reference point was Davao only.
It was only when he became the President when he had gotten hold of intelligence information that the drug problem was so widespread, that he had realized it could not be finished in the six month time frame that he had set up.
The President cited the information he got that at least 40 percent of barangay captains and 6,000 policemen are into the drug operations.
He said majority of the 160,000-strong PNP are still “okay”
“Pero ang problema, it (drug menace) is a virulent thing that affected lahat ng law enforcement. Kaya pagka-droga tumabi kayo,” he said.
Mr. Duterte also cited the instances where police would seize 50 kilos of shabu, only to report 25 kilos.
“Tapos may medalya pa for meritorious performance,” he said.
“Kaya hindi na ako tumatawa kasi hirap na ako,” the President added.
President Duterte said law enforcement officers who are committing crimes are committing treason and vowed to go after them.
