Priest speaks up for EJK victims; Bato cries ‘propaganda’

Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa and a priest, who helped found an organization counseling victims of drug war, on Monday had an exchange of words over the alleged extrajudicial killings during the Duterte administration.

Testifying before the Senate blue ribbon committee, Fr. Flavie Villanueva said that at least 3,600 were killed in the first 100 days of the former President Rodrigo Duterte in office, with 39 killings on the first day alone.

The priest also showed a list of names of over 300 alleged EJK victims whose families joined the Program Paghilom.

Villanueva also presented a “DDS template” which he claimed Duterte replicated in Metro Manila and other parts of the country during his presidency.

He said that four elements could be noticed on the body of a drug war victim:

• One to three sachets of shabu worth P200 per sachet,
• Three signs of torture,
• A .38 caliber without serial number, and
• “Dirty feet”

Villanueva himself admitted to using illegal drugs for 15 years, adding that he had a period of relapse while he was in the seminary.

“Hindi ko po sinasangayunan ang mga adik sa dahilang 15 taon rin ako gumamit at kaya ko pinasok ang ganitong pagtatanggol sa mga inakusahan ng adik, naniniwala ako na may pag-asa sila. Hindi dapat paslangin o pasabugin ang bungo,” the priest said.

(I'm not defending drug addicts because I've also used illegal drugs for 15 years. I’m defending the accused because I believe they have hope. They should not be killed or their skulls should not be blown up.)

Responding to Villanueva's testimony, Dela Rosa asked him how many cases have he filed with regard to the alleged EJKs.

But panel chair, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, backed the priest, saying it should be the police who should be filing the case.

“Responsibility nga ng police, Mr. Chair, pero sila ang nag-imbestiga… Kung hindi siya tumulong, para ma-file ang kaso na ‘yan, halata na ang ginagawa niya puro propaganda. Nagpo-propaganda lang siya. Nagsasabi siyang ganon, hindi pala siya interested na makuha ang hustisya, hindi niya finollow up sa pulis kung kasuhan na itong mga g*go na ito,” Dela Rosa said.

(It is the responsibility of the police, Mr. Chair, but Father’s group is the one investigating... If he doesn't help in filing cases, it's obvious that what he's doing is just propaganda. He's just pretending. He is saying all these things, but he is not interested in getting justice, and he did not follow up with the police if the suspects were charged.)

“I for one, I want justice to be served. Lalo na ‘yung mga inosente na pinatay. Dapat talaga Father…baka mas pwede pa akong maging pari kung tutuusin kasi gusto talaga,” he added.

(I for one, I want justice to be served, especially to the innocent ones who were killed. Maybe I can be a better priest after all I want justice to be served," he added.

‘Sh_t happens’

The senator also defended his “sh_t happens” remark in 2019 following the death of a three-year old girl during a drug buy-bust operation in Rodriguez, Rizal.

Dela Rosa, who was referring to the killing of Myca Ulpina, said there’s no perfect operation as police could not always control the environment they are in. Despite this, he said he does not mean to degrade the departed soul of Ulpina.

“Sa amin sa police, sa military, during operations, when you don’t have complete control of the operational environment, you expect sh_t happens. ‘Yun nga nangyari na. Namatay ang bata, tinamaan ang bata. Talagang for me, for us, sh_t happens. Nangyari ‘yun. So, what’s the fuss?” he said.

(During operations, when police don't have complete control of the operational environment, you expect shit to happen. That's what happened. The child died, the child was hit. For me, for us, shit happened. So, what's the fuss?)

“Ang problema lang sa inyo Father, you're trying to capitalize my words para for propaganda purposes. That’s very bad, Father. Masama po ‘yan. 'Wag niyong gamitin…you don’t take the word out of context para i-propagandize ang isang issue,” he said.

(The only problem with you Father, you're trying to capitalize my words for propaganda purposes. That's very bad, Father. That's bad. Don't take my word out of context to propagate an issue.)

Villanueva, in return, denied the propaganda allegation of the lawmaker. He also said that there are already several cases that they are looking into.

“Hindi po uso at hindi nasa bokabularyo ko ang pagbo-blot ng katotohanan at pagpo-propaganda. Ito po’y ginawa ko sapagkat bago pa magkaroon ng patayan sa nagdaang administration meron na tayong isang lugar na nagka-kalinga,” the priest said.

(Bloting the truth and propagandizing are not in my vocabulary. I did this because before there were killings in the previous administration, we were already helping vulnerable people.)

On June 29, 2019, police conducted a buy-bust operation targeting Renato Ulpina and another  drug suspect.

Police claimed Ulpina used his daughter Kateleen Myca Ulpina as a human shield during the shootout but the victim’s family and a witness denied this.

Four were killed in the incident including Ulpina, Kateleen, another drug suspect, and Senior Master Sergeant Conrad Cabigao who acted as the poseur buyer. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News