Panelo on Kian's death: You cannot just kill somebody like that

MANILA, Philippines — Police officers cannot just kill 17-year-old student Kian delos Santos even if he was a drug runner as police and supporters of the drug war claim, President Duterte’s chief legal adviser said Monday.

 

Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo said law enforcers can only use force if the suspect poses a threat to their lives.

 

“Many are saying that the boy was a child runner. Even if he was a drug runner, you cannot just kill somebody like that,” Panelo said in an interview with state-run Radyo Pilipinas.

 

“Kailangan nanlaban siya. Eh, kung hindi naglaban, bakit naman siya papatayin? Kaya hindi papayag si Presidente ng ganoon-ganoon lang (He should have fought. If he did not, why kill him? The President will not allow this to pass),” he added.

 

Delos Santos, a Grade 11 student, was killed in the police’s intensified anti-drug operations in Caloocan City last Wednesday. His death has sparked outrage among activists and some politicians and has raised questions on the way the police conducts anti-drug operations.

 

Policemen involved in the operation claim that delos Santos drew a gun and fired at them, prompting them to shoot him. Closed circuit television footage, however, showed the policemen carrying the boy, contradicting the claim that delos Santos fired at them.

 

Senior Superintendent Chito Bersaluna — the Caloocan City police chief — and four other policemen have been relieved from their posts pending the investigation of the incident.

 

Critics and allies of Duterte in Congress have condemned the killing and have called for an impartial probe of the circumstances that led to delos Santos’ death.

Panelo said Duterte does not tolerate abusive practices by law enforcers.

 

“He (Duterte) declared a war (against illegal drugs) and he said he would support the policemen. But he he also stated clearly: ‘But those who will abuse their authority will have, held to pay, they will not go unpunished,’” the presidential legal counsel said.

 

“This has to be investigated to determine what really happened,” he added.

 

The PNP's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the National Bureau of Investigation have begun separate investigations into the incident. The Commission on Human Rights has also sent investigators to Caloocan as well as to Bulacan and Laguna to look into drug-related deaths there.

 

The Senate majority bloc has also condemned the killing and has called for hearings into Delos Santos' death.

 

READ: Senate majority condemns Kian's slay, calls for probe

 

Panelo also lashed at politicians who are allegedly taking advantage of the issue to discredit the President.

 

“They (politicians) will jump at any issue to demolish this presidency. It’s natural for them to do so. It seems that they won’t stop. They are always like that…But people don’t believe them,” he added.