Palace: Report of police dumping bodies in Manila Bay just ‘hearsay’

A Malacañang official on Monday dismissed as "mere allegations" Al Jazeera's report that bodies of victims slain in President Duterte's war on drugs were being dumped in Manila Bay.

"If there is no evidence to back that up, then that remains as hearsay," said Menardo Guevarra, the Senior Deputy Executive Secretary to the President.

In a report published last Friday, Al Jazeera interviewed a fisherman who said that a police officer ordered him to "take out the trash" and that he had disposed of as many as 20 bodies in the bay.

The news organization also said it was able to verify the identity of one of the bodies that the fisherman said he had dumped in the bay. The fisherman had recognized his friend, who was known to the police as a local drug pusher.

Senior Superintendent Danny Macerin, the chief of the Manila Police District's Directorial staff, claimed they issued no such directive.

"Ang leadership ng MPS ay walang ganoon na kautusan. Ating imbestigahan kung talagang totoo ang sinasabi sa report niya," Macerin said in a report by Sandra Aguinaldo on "24 Oras."

The MPD also said it had no record of any bodies recovered from Manila Bay in 2017.

However, the police added, three corpses were found in separate incidents in 2016: two were fished from Manila Bay waters while another was found along the shores.

At Baseco Compound, the large urban poor community living on the water's edge, no one was willing to speak to Aguinaldo on camera regarding the alleged dumping of bodies in the bay.

Barangay officials mentioned finding the remains of a chop-chop victim, but added that the remains could have drifted into the bay from Pasig River.

The natural harbor of Manila Bay is one of the country's top tourist destinations, and its boardwalk is a popular spot for families and couples.

In 2015, when he was still mayor of Davao City, Duterte said that he would go after criminals and dump their bodies in Manila Bay. "Diyan mo makita, tataba iyong isda sa Manila Bay. Diyan ko kayo itapon," he said. — Margaret Claire Layug/BM, GMA News