It took humbugging for one to do a narration of unsolicited information that eventually pushed the storyteller to a deep hole. The revelation of what used to be well-kept secrets of the nationwide bloody war on drugs that was reportedly patterned from a template of Davao City uncovered a series of nefarious operations involving government law enforcers and politicians. The congressional investigation gathered vital information from invited resource persons and witnesses. One issue led to other issues that were interconnected based on the testimonies and documents that the congressional investigation collected in the series of hearings conducted. Witnesses came out to reveal many information involving the drug war and the system that was implemented by the former president.
The key to many concealed information was brought by no less that the former president who bragged about the use of methods that aimed at eliminating those who were found to be involved in drugs, either as users, pushers or bigtime operators who has the money to bring into the country huge amounts of prohibited drugs. The small operators were easily jailed if not silenced forever through what was dubbed as extra-judicial killings. The instruction from the then former president was for law enforcers to go after the suspected illegal-drugs personalities, nab them if possible, and never hesitate to shoot if the subject would resist the arrest and puts the law enforcement officer’s life in danger. Such instruction emboldened the law enforcers to abort the lives of many innocent persons who were suspected to be into the illegal drugs trade.
Verily, the method disregarded the fundamental tenets of due process and the constitutional provisions enshrined in the bill of rights, chiefly, the right to life and liberty anchored on the presumption of innocence that can only be overcome by conviction after trial by a court of competent jurisdiction. The suspect is presumed innocent of any criminal act and must be afforded his day in court before he can be held liable for the crime that he is suspected to have committed. Unfortunately, such rights are disregarded altogether by the law enforcers who act as judge by disposing pronto with the barrel of the gun. The act is a clear arrogation by law enforcers what ought to be the solve power of a judge.
In the course of the congressional investigation, it was adduced from no less than the former president’s narration that he took full responsibility in his order to kill drug suspects who would resist arrest. The law enforcers could not be blamed for following what they thought was an order from no less that the former president as well as superiors in the line of command, no matter if the order is unlawful. Indeed, the method emanated from what was dubbed as the Davao Death Squad that had been vehemently denied by the former president’s generals who showed their loyalty and willingness to do everything to protect their boss. Until the boss turned boastful about the success of his war on drugs and the existence of the alleged Davao Death Squad where he tagged his police generals as leaders. Truly, it took a chance to bare unsolicited information to disclose information that opened a deep hole to the self-perdition of no less than the digger.
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