With her appointment as co-chair of the Inter-agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD), Vice President Leni Robredo must already have something in mind on how to start her job. Afterall, she has been harping before of her opposition to the bloody drug war. At least some fundamental plan for now.
On Saturday, Senator Panfilo Lacson bared that the Vice President has conferred with him and agreed that a shift the drug war’s focus on “supply constriction” to target big-time drug lords instead of street peddlers is the main focus of the new strategy.
Robredo has openly criticized President Duterte’s anti-drug war, even to the point of calling for external party investigation. She had declared that she was amenable to a possible intervention of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), if the Philippine government fails to punish drug offenders. The 47-man UNHRC on July 11 adopted a reolution led by Iceland that seeks a probe into Duterte’s war on illegal drugs. The adoption of the resolution mandates UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet to present a “comprehensive” report on the drug war in the Philippines during the council’s 44th session in June 2020. For his response, President Duterte made it clear that he would ignore the investigation that would be initiated by the UNHRC, as he is only inclined to face a Philippine court under Philippine laws.
Based on data released by the Philippine National Police (PNP) on November 6, about 5,779 drug personalities died in legitimate police anti-drug operations from July 1, 2016 to Aug. 31, 2019.
Robredo wants a paradigm shift in the approach. How she will execute the plan is yet to be formulated.
For now, Robredo cannot complain about the support given to her by the agencies involved in the anti-illegal drugs campaign. Upon the directive of the President, agencies like the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency are all at her disposal to execute the plan once it is finalized.
To be effective, Robredo needs to pursue a campaign free of influence and intervention by the other personalities of the opposition–some of those wanted her not to accept the designation.
This is Robredo’s time to prove her worth as an elected public official worth her salt. She has not proven anything yet and this could be her biggest break.
Or biggest loss.
