Duterte won’t tolerate police killings, Palace assures public anew

President Rodrigo Duterte will not tolerate abuses and killings committed by some cops, Malacañang reiterated Tuesday, following a news report prompting questions anew about the government’s bloody anti-drug operations.

At a press briefing, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said authorities are now looking into the report released by Reuters news agency, which showed security footage of an anti-drug operation conducted last October 11 in Manila.

The footage belies the claim of the cops who conducted the operation that they shot the suspects to death in self-defense.

“I assure you that the authorities are now looking into this matter. We are in the process also of authenticating the video,” Roque said when asked to comment on the report.

“I assure you that the President will not tolerate any abuse that may be committed by some personnel of the PNP. Again, the Palace position is we do no tolerate police violence, brutality, and killing,” he said.

Roque said he has yet to see the videos obtained by Reuters but intends to watch it when he finds the time.

Roque said the commitment of Duterte that he will not tolerate police murders is evident in the separate cases of teens Carl Angelo Arnaiz and Kian Loyd delos Santos.

Duterte had met with parents of both Carl and Kian in separate occasions. The two teenagers both died in the hands of Caloocan policemen.

Meanwhile, the incident cited by Reuters in its report happened a day after the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) was tasked to take the lead role in the drug war.

Duterte recently said in his speeches that he intends to return the drug war to the police.

Roque, however, said that the war on drugs remains with PDEA unless Duterte has issued a written directive stating otherwise. — RSJ, GMA News