Senate justice panel terminates hearing on extrajudicial killings

After six hearings, the Senate justice committee on Thursday decided to terminate its investigation on alleged extrajudicial killings (EJKs) committed amid the Duterte administration’s war on drugs. 

“We have enough to report,” Senator Richard Gordon, chair of the Senate justice panel, said, before Senator Panfilo Lacson moved to terminate the hearings. 

“By Monday, we will have a report…so that the public will be assuaged that we are all watching out for each other here. [It] may not be perfect but we we will try,” Gordon said. 

Before the hearing was terminated, Commission on Human Rights (CHR) chairperson Chito Gascon was allowed to speak before the committee. 

“We do wish to express that the Commission on Human Rights is always ready and prepared [to assist] the Senate committee in the great work it is doing in ferreting out the truth on the issue of extrajudicial killings and other issues on human rights,” Gascon said. 

Gordon earlier in the day decided to reject hearing the witnesses under the custody of the CHR after one of its commissioners referred to him as a “coward.” 

He proposed that the hearing instead focus on death penalty bills. Resources persons, however, were not notified of the change in agenda, forcing Gordon to revert to the issue of EJKs. 

Senator Gordon assured Gascon that he will include in his committee report the affidavits of the CHR witnesses. — KBK/RSJ, GMA News