Bato’s liability on irregularities of some cops during his term as PNP chief: ‘Konsensiya lang’

Senatorial candidate Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa on Saturday said only his conscience can be considered a liability for the irregularities that some cops allegedly committed in the implementation of anti-drug operations during his term as chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

"Ang aking pananagutan diyan ay konsensiya lamang. Ako'y nakukonsensiya dahil nangyayari 'yan during my time," Dela Rosa said on Debate 2019: The GMA Senatorial Faceoff where the cases of Kian delos Santos and Jee Ick Joo were raised.

"But when you say legal, ito po'y pinanagutan na ng mga suspects dahil nga lahat ng mga cessational cases na nangyari during my term, lahat po yan ay na-solve, nakasuhan, nakulong at ngayo'y nakaharap sa kaso. Lahat ng mga pulis na nag-aabuso," he added.

Kian was the 17-year-old student who was killed by Caloocan cops. Three policemen have been sentenced by the court to reclusion perpetua.

Jee Ick Joo, on the other hand, was the Korean businessman who was kidnapped and killed in 2016. Two of the three accused in the case were policemen.

Dela Rosa underscored that the internal cleansing within the ranks of the police is unrelenting.

Another senatorial candidate, human rights lawyer Chel Diokno, asked Dela Rosa why he used the term "neutralize" in the memorandum circular for Oplan Tokhang when the word has "no legal definition" and could easily be misinterpreted by law enforcers as "kill."

The former PNP chief, however, begged to disagree.

"Ang masama diyan, kasi kayo ang nagbigay ng masamang meaning... Neutralize means render the enemy incapable of committing further crime or further injury... Hindi naman ibig sabihin patayin. Kayo lang ang nagbigay ng word na patay," Dela Rosa said. 

— RSJ, GMA News