Leni respects Duterte's proclamation of state of lawless violence

Vice President Leni Robredo on Tuesday said she respects President Rodrigo Duterte's proclamation that declares a state of national emergency on account of lawless violence in Mindanao. 

In a statement, Robredo noted that the proclamation commands the military and the police force to suppress lawless violence in Mindanao and the country within what is allowed by the Constitution and existing laws.

"We respect the decision of the President to exercise his Constitutional power to call out the Armed Forces of the Philippines to assist in suppressing lawless violence," she said.

"And we appreciate that the Proclamation makes clear that this does not suspend any part of the Constitution or impair any of our fundamental rights," Robredo added.

Robredo also reiterated her earlier call for a "calm and collective action" among the people in dealing with Friday's bomb attack in Davao City that left 14 people dead and over 60 others injured. 

"We reiterate our call that we bring to justice those responsible for the violence in Davao and at the same time, [that] our bill of rights is followed and treated with utmost respect," she said.

The declaration was justified by the "spate of violence and lawless acts across many parts of Mindanao," such as abductions, hostage-takings, murder of innocent civilians, bombing of power transmission facilities, highway robberies and extortions, attacks on military outposts, media killings, and mass jailbreaks.

Cabinet officials said Duterte's proclamation was "triggered" by the bombing of the Roxas Night Market in Davao City. —KBK, GMA News