President Rodrigo Duterte said on Monday, October 28, that he took full responsibility for the bloody war on drugs that has killed thousands of people, but offered no apologies nor excuses for the killings done under the name of his war on drugs.
“I and I alone take full legal responsibility sa lahat ng nagawa ng mga pulis pursuant to my order, ako ang managot, at ako ang makulong, huwag ‘yung pulis na sumunod sa order ko, kawawa naman nagta-trabaho lang,” Duterte told lawmakers as the Senate Blue Ribbon Subcommittee began its probe into the Philippines’ war on drugs.
“Do not question my policies because I offer no apologies, no excuses. I did what I had to do, and whether you believe it or not, I did it for my country,” Duterte added.
During his term, Duterte confronted key opposition figures, such as Senator Risa Hontiveros, human rights lawyer Chel Diokno, and former Senator Leila De Lima.
The former president even shared a table with one of his fiercest critics, De Lima, who spent seven years in detention over drug trade accusations—six of those years under Duterte’s administration.
Although Duterte showed no sympathy, he did acknowledge his responsibility.
He also reiterated that police officers only engaged in killings out of self-defense, aligning with the claim that those killed had resisted arrest with a firearm.
“I have tried to do the best I can to address the problem of illegal drugs firmly and without compromise. For all of its successes and shortcomings, I, and I alone, take full legal responsibility,” Duterte said.
“Sa lahat ng mga nagawa ng pulis pursuant to my order, ako ang managot. At ako ang managot, ‘wag ang pulis na sumunod sa order ko,” he added.
The anti-drug campaign placed the former president at the center of the International Criminal Court’s investigation into crimes against humanity complaints filed by families of those killed in the drug war.
Data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency showed that 6,252 individuals died in anti-drug police operations from July 1, 2016, to May 31, 2022.
However, a year-end report from 2017, attributed to the Office of the President, reported over 20,000 deaths in the first 17 months of Duterte’s administration. (TCSP)
