LIBERAL Party presidential candidate Manuel Roxas II on Saturday joined the “word war” between Vice President Jejomar Binay and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte over Duterte’s admitted involvement in extra-judicial killings.
“What is he: judge, jury and executioner? In his mind, only he and he alone is correct. His views and only his views are correct. The Philippines is not like that and Filipinos are not like that,” Roxas said.
“When there’s a problem that does not agree with his view or belief, he will just curse it. That is not the right way to lead our country and that is not the character that we want to inculcate in our children,” Roxas said.
Roxas made the remark after Binay, in campaign speeches in Quezon province on Friday, tagged Duterte a “berdugo [executioner]” who kills only poor people, being exceedingly boastful and a king of lies.
“We do not need a leader who wantonly disregards the sanctity of human life and whose only wrong solution to the pressing problem of poverty is to kill the poor,” Binay said, adding that Duterte himself admitted links to the Davao Death Squad and that he had killed 1,700 people, 1,000 more than what was reported by Amnesty International.
Aside from Amnesty International, several other human rights groups have linked
Duterte to extra-judicial killings, including Human Rights Watch and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights.
But Duterte retracted his previous admissions to the summary executions of criminals.
“I never admitted that I did an extrajudicial [killing]. What I admitted to him [was] killings,” Duterte told reporters on Friday after being told Binay’s charges in Quezon.
“When you go against criminal syndicates, do not expect a pristine and white environment. It’s always bloody, but I never said extrajudicial,” he said. “I’m a lawyer, I am a Christian and [even if you say] how bad I am, I still have my values in life. I do not do that.”
But Binay dismissed Duterte’s denial and chided Duterte for his flip-flopping response to questions on his involvement in extrajudicial killings in Davao.
“Mayor Duterte, you are always boasting that you have already killed many people. Now, you’re denying it,” Binay said. “Make up your mind, berdugong mamamatay-tao [executioner-murderer].”
“The presidency is not for the unprincipled and the inconsistent. It is not for liars, braggarts, and most especially merciless killers,” Binay added.
Binay also taunted Duterte into changing his campaign slogan from “Tapang at Malasakit [Courage and Compassion]” to “Yabang, Kasinungalingan at Kawalang-Puso [Boastfulness, Prevarication and Ruthlessness]” since he said this would be more truthful.
Former Manila City Mayor and now Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza also joined the fray and reminded Duterte that Davao now ranks No. 4 in crime and tops the national statistics on the most number of rape cases among all major cities.
“Where is Mayor Duterte coming from? Showmanship and entertainment are not the solution, let’s be true to ourselves. He keeps bragging about Davao, when figures and statistics show otherwise,” Atienza said.
Atienza said when he and Binay were mayor, they have cleaned up their respective cities without having to resort to extra-judicial killings. Binay served as mayor of Makati City for more than 20 years.
Binay recalled how in past interviews, Duterte admitted his links to the Davao Death Squad and that he had killed 1,700 people, 1,000 more than what was reported by Amnesty International.
Binay scored Duterte for retracting his admission after the Vice President called him out for killing only poor people, including children, through summary executions.
“We do not need a leader who wantonly disregards the sanctity of human life and whose only wrong solution to the pressing problem of poverty is to kill the poor,” Binay further said.
Several human rights groups have linked Duterte to extra-judicial killings, among them Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights.
Binay said millions of people who watched the presidential debate in Cebu on March 20 heard Duterte clearly when he said: “When I become elected, I will continue the killings.”
Atienza, who was Manila mayor for nine years, said, “Mayor Duterte, Vice President Binay and I shared the same experience of confronting crimes in our cities. Before my term, Manila was the most crime ridden in Metro Manila.
“After nine years of effective work of combating criminality, it became the safest city. We did this by providing jobs and economic opportunities for Manilans, lessening the number of people who turned to crime as a solution to poverty.
“We never snuffed out any life through summary executions or salvaging. We got the police to do their jobs and perform better, at the same time tapping barangay officials to help in fighting crime.”
Atienza said Duterte’s solution of fighting crime with crime and snuffing out lives of poor and defenseless citizens would only aggravate the situation.
Atienza, who founded and maintains one of the biggest women’s organizations—the Kababaihan ng Maynila with an active membership of 10,000 and a base of 50,000—also criticized Duterte for trivializing women’s rights, saying it is totally unacceptable.
“I urge all Filipinos to judge candidates according to their values, religious beliefs and track record in curbing criminality. Let’s be wary of false promises not in consonance with our religious and traditional Filipino values. Only hardworking and hands-on executives will help our country recover from the mess we are in,” Atienza added.