Mayor Duterte responds to Alston’s report

Following his mission to the Philippines, the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions, Philip Alston, concluded that the Mayor Rodrigo Duterte should be stripped of his control over Davao City’s police department due to the death squad that freely operated there.

According to an article in the newspaper Davao Today, there have been some subsequent developments:

Duterte said Alston’s report will not deter him in purging the city of criminals. “You might think that the report of the UN rapporteur will discourage or stop us in the fight against drugs, you are dead wrong,” an angry Duterte said, “Davao city will still remain the most dangerous place for drug syndicates and criminals,” he said.

. . .

In his report, the UN rapportteur recommended that the National Police Command (Napolcom) should strip Duterte off his power and control over the Philippine National Police (PNP) units in the city, and should hold the national officers accountable for the shutting off of the death squad.

But it was not until after the killing of radio broadcaster Fernando Lintuan, earlier identified with Duterte’s political rival Prospero Nograles, that the deputy regional director for administration of the police regional office here was suddenly transferred to Camp Crame. Local radio stations also reported on the impending transfer of the city police director Jaime Morente, who was close to Duterte.

Earlier radio reports said Nograles had ordered the transfer reportedly to give way to an independent investigation of the broadcaster’s death. Nograles, however, denied it.

The sudden movement in the local police force prompted Duterte to resign as RPOC chair, but Duterte said this does not mean he will lose control in the drive against criminals.

“Not because I’m no longer the head of the RPOC, I could no longer go after you,” he said, referring to crime syndicates. “I can operate anywhere, even outside the city.”

He also told the scheduled Congressional inquiry into the killings to “go to hell,” as he ordered no let up in the operations against criminals and crime syndicates. “You can investigate everyday, I don’t give a s–t,” he said.

“There is still no let up against crime and drugs and that’s the policy,” Duterte said. “Dito sa Davao, you remain a target, an object and subject of assassination.”

“Wala akong pakialam sa UN report na iyan (I don’t care about the UN report),” he said.