NBI can conduct motu proprio probe into Duterte remarks vs. senators — SOJ Remulla

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) can conduct a motu proprio investigation into former President Rodrigo Duterte’s remark that incumbent senators should be killed to make way for other candidates, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Monday.

“Motu proprio the NBI can do that. Motu proprio, but tignan natin (we will see),” Remulla said in an ambush interview.

During the PDP-Laban proclamation rally, Duterte remarked that all their candidates will be able to get a seat in the Senate if 15 senators were killed.

"Patayin natin ‘yung mga senador ngayon para mabakante. Kung makapatay tayo ng mga 15 na senador, pasok na tayong lahat... Talking of opportunities, the only way to do it is pasabugin na lang natin,” he had said.

(Let’s kill the senators now to vacate the seats. If we can eliminate 15 senators, we can all get in... Talking of opportunities, the only way to do it is to just blow them up.)

Senator Ronald dela Rosa, a reelectionist under Duterte's PDP slate, said the former Philippine leader  was just joking around and did not literally mean what he said.

Remulla brushed off the supposed joke, saying they are sometimes “used to the language of the former president.”

“Hindi naman lahat ng sinasabi niya tatalon tayo, 'di ba (we will not jump at everything he says),” Remulla said.

“Pero if the senators themselves complain, then we will have reason to act on that. Sila 'yung ano eh, sila yung endangered ng ganoong statement eh. Can possibly have a ripple effect na hindi natin alam,” he added.

(But if the senators themselves complain, then we will have reason to act on that. They’re the ones endangered by that kind of statement. It can possibly have a ripple effect that we don’t know.)

Sara named names

Meanwhile, Remulla explained that Vice President Sara Duterte, the former president’s daughter, was investigated over her alleged kill order because she identified President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Speaker Martin Romualdez.

“Specific kasi 'yung kay Sara. Specific. Ni name niya si Presidente, si First Lady, at saka si Speaker Martin Romualdez,” he said.

(Sara’s was specific. It was specific. She named the President, the First Lady, and Speaker Martin Romualdez.

In an online press briefing in 2024, the Vice President said that she ordered someone to kill the three if an alleged plot against her succeeds.

The NBI has filed a complaint for inciting to sedition and grave threat against the Vice President over her remarks before the Department of Justice.

The DOJ said prosecutors are still evaluating whether the complaint will be returned to the NBI for further case build-up or if it will be submitted for preliminary investigation.

Joke

For his part, NBI Director Jaime Santiago earlier brushed off the former president’s remark as a “joke.”

“Kayo na nagsabi sa akin. Sir, ano masasabi ninyo doon sa joke ni President Rodrigo Duterte na ipapapatay ang 15. Kayo na nagsabi na joke eh. Miski kayo accepted ninyo na joke lang ‘yun,” Santiago said.

(You were the ones who asked me, "Sir, what can you say about the joke of President Rodrigo Duterte to kill the 15?" You already said it was a joke. Even you accept that it is just a joke.)

In a separate statement, Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III said the public should let the Department of Justice and the NBI do their work.

“They should know if given the facts whether a crime has been committed or not. If there is no crime whatsoever then let us drop the issue,” he said.

“However, a person’s obsession with the topic of death and killing, mentioning it every time he or she speaks, is a worrying sign of a serious personality disorder,” he added.

On the other hand, Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Adiong and 1-Rider party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez said authorities should take the comments of the former president seriously.

“When will the joke end? It’s about time for the law enforcement agencies to take these rhetorics seriously, [find out] whether there is a validity or there's a merit for the NBI to pursue filing charges against [former] President Duterte. Let’s draw the line [on] when can we actually accept things as a joke or as a mere rhetoric and when can a statement actually cause harm to individual lives,” Adiong said in a press conference.

“Kung sinasabi po natin na kailangan seryosohin po natin ‘yung mga ordinaryong tao kapag sila ay nagbabanta o nagdo-joke ng bomb threats eh inaaresto natin sila (When we take bomb jokes and threats from ordinary people seriously and have then arrested)...why be selective in the application of our policies?” he added.

The NBI, Adiong said, has the responsibility to ensure that the “rhetorics don’t go overboard.”

Gutierrez, for his part, said such threats of killing should not be normalized because the supporters of former President Duterte could take such statements as a license to take arms and act violently.

“Katanggap-tanggap po ba ang ganitong mga salita? It has come to the point wherein...is it normal to joke about killing? To joke about things like that? And the one who said it, said under oath [before congressional inquiries] that he did kill people. Where do we draw the line?” Gutierrez, a lawyer, said, referring to the previous declaration of President Duterte that he had already killed a lot of people.

“Later on, the interpreter will say that it was just a joke. [But] we have to take these words seriously. Even if the one who uttered the words is not serious, we cannot disregard the fact that he has a lot of followers. Because that is the problem with words: it could embolden people to do wrong,” Gutierrez added.—AOL/RSJ, GMA Integrated News