Zubiri to file resolution calling for probe on EJKs

Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri on Wednesday said he and other lawmakers will also file a resolution calling for an investigation on extrajudicial killings.

In an interview on Unang Balita, Zubiri said he was not able to sign Senate Resolution 516 signed by 16 of 23 senators because no one approached him about it.

The said resolution urged the Duterte administration to “undertake the necessary steps to stop the senseless killings, especially of our children, and to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, to determine the institutional reasons, if any, that give rise to such killings."

"Hindi naman ako nilapitan nila. Sana nilapitan po nila 'ko. Walang lumapit sa 'kin," he said.

Zubiri said no one also approached Senators Cynthia Villar and Richard Gordon either.

"Walang lumapit kay Senator Villar. Walang lumapit kay Senator Gordon. Sila mismo tinawagan ko kagabi. Wala daw lumapit," he said.

Zubiri said usually, the staff of the one drafting the resolution would contact the staff of other senators to ask for lawmakers' signatures. 

"Walang lumapit sa amin kaya ngayong araw na 'to, magfa-file din po kami ng resolution. Hindi lamang kabataan ang gusto po naming imbestigahan. Pati 'yung lahat-lahat na ng extrajudicial killings. Dapat maitigil na po 'yan," he said. 

Senate Resolution 516 cited the recent deaths of Kian Loyd delos Santos, Carl Angelo Arnaiz, and Reynaldo "Kulot" de Guzman. Delos Santos and Arnaiz perished at the hands of police after allegedly engaging them in a shootout, the resolution said. De Guzman, 14, was found dead in Nueva Ecija.

The resolution also called on the Senate to launch an investigation of the spate of killings to determine if any “institutional reasons” are causing them. —KG/KVD, GMA News