EJK victim’s mom-in-law hopes Duterte dies and rots in jail

Eunila Aguilar carries a photo of his son-in-law Dante Santos, who was killed in August 2017. Aguilar and other relatives of drug war casualties attended a thanksgiving mass at the Ina ng Lupang Pangako Parish in Payatas, Quezon City after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest order against former president Rodrigo Duterte. (Gabriel P. Lalu/ INQUIRER.net)

MANILA, Philippines — The mother-in-law of an alleged extrajudicial killing (EJK) victim from Quezon City hopes former President Rodrigo Duterte will rot and die in jail after he was arrested by police serving the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

At the Thanksgiving mass at the Ina ng Lupang Pangako Parish in Payatas, Quezon City, Eunila Aguilar, mother-in-law of Dante Santos, who was killed last August 2017, said they have been struggling to make ends meet since Santos had two children with her daughter.

Aguilar used to work as a clothes washer and could no longer hold jobs since she is now 75 years old.

“Hirap na hirap na kami, maliit pang naiwan ‘yong dalawang anak niya, tinapon siya sa area eh, hindi namin alam na pinatay siya, tatlong araw lang nakita na lamang namin kinuha siya sa punerarya. Hirap na hirap na ako dito, kung hindi pa siguro (dahil) kay Father (Bong Sarabia), wala, wala,” she told reporters.

(We are struggling because he left two little children with us after his body was dumped in some area; we didn’t even know that he was killed. After just three days, we claimed his body from a funeral parlor. It’s hard for us if not for Father (Bong Sarabia),we would be helpless.)

“Hirap na hirap na kami. Ngayon nagpasalamat ako na nahuli na si Duterte, sana mamatay siya. Hindi kami natatakot na kami’y barilin dito, lalaban ko talaga, ipaglalaban ko talaga ‘yong aking manugang,” she added. “Sana makulong siya, mamatay na siya sa kulungan.”

(It’s hard, but now we are thankful that Duterte was arrested. I hope he dies. I am not afraid if somebody will gun us down, I would really fight for my son-in-law. I hope he rots and dies in jail.)

Other women who were also present for the thanksgiving mass — as gratitude for the arrest of Duterte — also lamented that the drug war did not give a chance for suspected drug users to undergo treatment.

“(Gusto namin) maikulong po siya, ‘yan lang po […] sa dami po niyang pinapapatay dito sa Pilipinas, dapat sa gano’ng sitwasyon sa droga na ‘yan, dapat unahin ‘yong puno hindi ‘yong mga galamay, hindi naman ‘yon ang dapat,” another woman said.

(We want him jailed, that’s it. […] with the sheer number of people he ordered dead, with that drug situation, they should have gone for the main players and not the underlings.)

“No’ng naghearing kami sa Senado, inamin naman niya eh, na ‘pag lumaban, patayin niyo. Hindi naman lumaban ‘yong anak ko eh, naglalakad lang sa kalsada eh,” she added.

(When we were in a Senate hearing, he admitted telling cops to kill suspects if they fight back. But my son-in-law was not fighting back, he was just walking along the road.)

Payatas was one of the hotspots of Duterte’s drug war, as several alleged drug suspects were killed in the area. In 2017, numbers from the Philippine National Police (PNP) showed that there was a 90 percent increase in the number of murder cases in the city, compared to the final year of former president Benigno Aquino III’s administration.

READ: Drug war in QC: Murders up by 90% 

It was also in Payatas Efren Morillo was able to escape police officers by playing dead. Morillo disputed claims by the police that he fought back against officers.

Morillo was acquitted of charges stemming from claims that he fought against authorities.

READ: QC court acquits drug war survivor, junks cops’ ‘nanlaban’ claim 

Parish priest Bong Sarabia said that parishioners were surprised with Duterte’s arrest prompting calls for the EJK victims to convene and call for a thanksgiving mass.

“This is a thanksgiving mass as it is a big surprise for us, that former president Duterte was arrested and the warrant of arrest was served. And that his case at the International Criminal Court would now start,” Sarabia said in a separate interview.

Duterte was held earlier at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 after the Philippine National Police (PNP) assisted in implementing the International Criminal Police Organization red notice for the ICC arrest order. Duterte was being investigated for crimes against humanity in connection with his administration’s war on illegal drugs.

The former president was then brought to the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City.

READ: Rodrigo Duterte now under police custody 

Over the weekend, there were rumors already that the ICC will soon issue an an arrest order for Duterte. Duterte, his family and key allies were in Hong Kong to meet with overseas Filipino workers there.

In Hong Kong, the former president spoke on the arrest order, saying that his actions during the war on illegal drugs were for the Philippines’ benefit.

READ: Duterte on possible ICC arrest warrant: I did everything for Filipinos 

However, several official and independent investigations of the drug war have shown that there were many instances where innocent individuals were dragged into the anti-drug operations. In August 2017, 17-year-old Kian delos Santos was summarily executed in Caloocan City even if he was not the original target of the operation.

The three police officers involved in the killing of delos Santos were convicted of murder.

READ: 3 policemen guilty of killing Kian delos Santos — court 

Then last August 2024, the House of Representatives’ quad committee started an extensive probe on the drug war and other issues. The four panels eventually recommended the filing of crimes against humanity complaints against Duterte and his key allies for allegedly committing EJKs in the anti-drug campaign.

In one of the hearings, it was revealed by former police colonel Royina Garma that Duterte called him in May 2016 about setting up a rewards system for police officers who would kill drug suspects.

READ: Garma bares monetary reward range under ‘Davao drug war template’ 

Duterte has denied Garma’s testimony of a reward system in the war on drugs.