Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon and other minority senators expressed their opposition to reimposing the death penalty in the Philippines, citing the country’s weak justice system and COVID-19 crisis.
“I have consistently opposed the imposition of the death penalty because of our deficiencies in our justice system. You make a mistake in imposing the death penalty, you can never correct that mistake,” said Drilon, a former Justice secretary, in an interview on ANC.
“Let’s reform our law enforcement and justice system before we even think of reimposing the death penalty,” he added.
President Rodrigo Duterte revived the idea of bringing back the death penalty by lethal injection for drug offenses during his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) yesterday.
Meanwhile, Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, questioned the government’s priorities.
“Walang saysay ang death penalty sa pagtugon sa pinakamatinding krisis ng kalusugan at ekomomiya na hinaharap ng bansa,” the opposition senator said in a message.
(The death penalty is meaningless in addressing the worst health and economic crisis the country is facing.)
“Ang dapat i-lethal injection ay ‘yung COVID at ang patuloy na [pagkalat] nito. Hangga’t hindi ito nasusugpo, hindi makakabangon ang ekonomiya at hindi din matutugunan ang gutom at joblessness,” he added.
(COVID and its continuous spread should undergo the lethal injection. As long as it is not defeated, the economy will not recover and hunger and joblessness will not be met.)
Senator Risa Hontiveros also advised the administration to focus on reviving the economy, not the death penalty.
“The government should get its head in the game and focus on the biggest crisis we are facing now. I can’t believe I need to say this, pero hindi solusyon sa pandemya ang death penalty,” she said in a statement.
Senators Imee Marcos and Vicente Sotto III, meanwhile, expressed their support on imposing the death penalty for “big-time” drug convicts in the Philippines.
“Anti-poor ang death penalty eh… Makakakuha ng magagaling na abugado ang mayaman at ang mahirap ay hindi. Those who will only be meted the death penalty will be the poor ones,” Sotto said in an interview on ANC.
(The death penalty is anti-poor. The rich can get good lawyers, and the poor can not. Those who will only be meted the death penalty will be the poor ones.)
“Only for high-level drug traffickers I will support, not just the regular drug traffickers,” the Senate President added.