Press Release
November 9, 2021

Duterte's repeated lies and defense of drug war an attempt to hide his failure in a flood of blood - De Lima

Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima slammed Mr. Duterte's repeated defense of his War on Drugs and continued neglect of the thousands of victims who belong to poor families.

De Lima, the staunchest critic of the current regime's brutal anti-narcotics campaign, said Duterte continues to lie and deceive the public about the murders committed under his term, saying that this is for the future of the youth.

"Duterte still wants to convince us that it is just ok to murder people so long as he says that it was done for the future of the nation's youth. Assuming that it is even legal to kill people to 'save' the country, up to now the mass executioner of Davao still has not come out with any proof that the more than 20,000 dead in his drug war has actually saved the country from the scourge of drugs," De Lima said.

"So what, in the five years of his murderous drug war, did he actually accomplish? That there are now 20,000 dead Filipinos? How can that be a success?," she added.

The lady Senator from Bicol also lambasted Duterte's arrogance on what he considers as effective anti-illegal drug campaign despite the millions of pesos worth of shabu still discovered in his own city of Davao, a city that was supposed to be the beneficiary of a local drug war since the 1990s.

Just last September, it was reported that the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) operatives dismantled two suspected drug dens that led to the arrest of 14 suspects during simultaneous anti-illegal drug operations in Davao City.

"Nawala ba ang drugs sa Davao sa pagpatay ni Duterte sa mahigit kumulang tatlong libong biktima ng DDS mula noong 1990? Anong kinabukasan ang pinagsasabi niya kung sa mismong syudad ng Davao kung saan siya naghari ng 30 taon ay talamak pa rin ang droga?," stressed De Lima.

"Just like in Davao, his five-year killing spree throughout the whole country has not resulted in anything positive in eradicating the drug menace. That this has resulted for the good of the country is just all in his mind. With nothing to show for it, Duterte is reduced to pleading to the people that his intentions were good," she added.

De Lima further stated that Duterte knows very well that he is lying and that he never solved the drug problem in Davao City, as proven by one of the RTC judges presiding over one of his City's drug courts, who, during a JBC interview back in 2016, admitted that drugs remained a big problem in that jurisdiction owing to the authorities' - particularly policemen's - failure to observe the chain of custody.

De Lima gained the ire of Duterte when she investigated the extrajudicial killings being carried out by the Davao Death Squad (DDS) in Davao City during the term of then Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, who is alleged to be the mastermind behind the summary executions. As Senator, De Lima also sought an inquiry into the spate of killings in the country when Duterte took office as President.

"Duterte was a failure both by hook and by crook. Now, even the Filipino people know what a failure he is," she said.

"He did not kill all those thousands of mostly poor people for the future of the youth, he did it because he had nothing better to show for in his bid for higher power. He knew he was a failure, but he thought he could hide his failure in a flood of blood," De Lima added.

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