House execs expect more witnesses to come forward after Duterte’s arrest

MANILA, Philippines — More witnesses—particularly those who have direct knowledge or involvement in the drug war—would likely come out after former President Rodrigo Duterte’s arrest, ranking House of Representatives lawmakers said on Wednesday.

Deputy Majority Leader and La Union Rep. Paolo Ortega V and Assistant Majority Leader and Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Raul Angelo Bongalon both believe that the developments regarding Duterte’s case before the International Criminal Court (ICC) may instill confidence in those who were afraid to speak.

“Sigurado ’yon na mas lalong, may mga taong magka-come forward. At saka ’yong mga taong siguro’ng mas takot dati, medyo nawawala na ‘yong takot nila, at ‘yong iba naman na kinakainan ng konsiyensya, syempre gusto rin nila na mabawasan na ‘yong iniisip nila,” Ortega said.

(Surely, more people would come forward. And also people who were afraid before, maybe their fear would go away, and those who are being bugged by their conscience, maybe they would want to shed these thoughts off of their minds.)

“This is a story of justice at ang lahat ng kuwento kailangan may katapusan, we have to finish the story and therefore sabi ko ang bida dito, ang dapat makakamit ng hustisya ay ‘yong mga biktima po at saka ‘yong mga nakita po natin na pamilya nila,” he added.

(This is a story of justice and all stories must come to an end, we have to finish the story and therefore the main characters here are those who should get justice, the victims and the families left behind.)

Bongalon meanwhile noted that the investigation conducted by the House quad committee on the drug war and alleged extrajudicial killings prompted different people involved in the campaign—including Duterte’s former allies and supporters—to come out in the open and testify to the atrocities committed.

“I totally agree, if we really observe what happened during the past administration, there was no thorough and comprehensive investigation about the EJKs and in fact, one of the actions taken by the House of Representatives is the investigation about the EJK, the drugs, the Pogo and the other controversies,” Bongalon said.

“So with that investigation, it served as a platform for persons to really enlighten regarding the implementation of the bloody war on drugs. In fact, the likes of Colonel (Jovie) Espinido appeared and testified before the investigation. So with this development, I guess people will have courage to testify and speak what they know about this bloody war on drugs,” he added.

Espenido, once hailed as a poster boy of Duterte’ drug war, appeared before the quad committee and testified under oath that the late ex-mayor David Navarro of Clarin, Misamis Occidental, told him that money from Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos), small town lottery (STLs), and intelligence funds were used to reward police officers who implemented the anti-drug operations.

READ: Espenido told: Pogo money used to reward anti-drug units

Espenido also claimed that then-Philippine National Police (PNP) chief and now Sen. Ronald dela Rosa’s orders to rid Albuera, Leyte of illegal drugs also meant “killing” people linked to the trade.

The police official also retracted all his allegations against staunch Duterte critic, former senator Leila de Lima, while revealing that he and confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa were asked to make similar testimonies against her.

READ: Espenido retracts drug-related allegations vs De Lima

But probably the most damning testimony in the quad committee hearings came from former police colonel Royina Garma, a close ally of the Dutertes who admitted having the privilege to directly visit the former president while he was in Malacañang.

Last October 11, 2024, Garma said that Duterte (who just won the Philippine presidency) contacted her in May 2016 about creating a task force that can implement the drug war on a national scale, with the “Davao template” in mind.

Garma said the Davao template refers to a rewards system, with cash grants ranging from P20,000 to P1 million given to cops who kill drug suspects.

According to Garma, Duterte told her that the task force head has to be an Iglesia ni Cristo member—leading Garma to tap ex-police colonel Edilberto Leonardo.

Garma also said that Leonardo told her that he made a proposal outlining the task force’s operations, coursed through Senator Bong Go, who was then the special assistant to Duterte.

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

After coming home from Hong Kong on Tuesday morning, Duterte was stopped from leaving the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3, as the Philippine National Police assisted the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) in enforcing the ICC arrest order.

After questioning the arrest, Duterte eventually boarded a chartered plane from Villamor Air Base, which left Manila for the Netherlands a few minutes after 11:00 p.m., Tuesday.

ICC is based in The Hague, which in the Netherlands.

As early as last Saturday, there were already talks about the ICC possibly releasing an arrest order against Duterte. During this time, Duterte and his entourage flew to Hong Kong to meet overseas Filipino workers.

While in Hong Kong, Duterte addressed talks about the arrest order, saying that his actions during the war on illegal drugs were for the Philippines’ benefit.

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. —with reports from Sheba Barr, INQUIRER.net trainee