MANILA, Philippines - Now that the Senate inquiry into alleged extrajudicial killings of suspected drug pushers and addicts has been concluded, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said that Sen. Richard Gordon should be remembered as someone who tried to cover up the issue.
Reacting to the decision of Gordon, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, to end the hearings, Trillanes said there is no way for Gordon to “prove what he did not attempt to investigate in the first place.”
“He can go on a monologue again to justify his actions, but he won’t be able to convince the people who witnessed what transpired during the hearings,” Trillanes said.
Trillanes and Sen. Leila de Lima have butted heads with Gordon during the hearings due to disagreements on how to proceed with the investigation.
De Lima, before she was ousted as chair of the committee, spearheaded the probe on the killings perpetrated by the alleged Davao death squad (DDS) when now President Duterte was still the city’s mayor.
A self-confessed member of the DDS, Edgar Matobato, was presented by De Lima and Trillanes to testify about the killings, which he said involved over 1,000 victims.
After Gordon took over as committee chairman, Matobato was dismissed as an unreliable witness because of supposed inconsistencies in his testimony.
During last Thursday’s hearing, Gordon also refused to allow the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to present its witnesses who were supposed to testify about the killings perpetrated by members of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
“Eventually, the truth would come out and when that day comes, Senator Gordon should be remembered as one of those who tried to cover it up,” Trillanes said.
Trillanes said Matobato was able to post P30,000 bail yesterday and is now back under his protective custody.
Matabato was temporarily freed from detention at the Camp Crame Custodial Center in Quezon City after posting bail for illegal possession of firearms charges filed against him in Davao City.
He was recently turned over by Trillanes to PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa after an arrest warrant was issued against him for failing to appear in his arraignment in Davao City for his illegal possession of firearms case.
“Mr. Matobato was able to post bail at the QC RTC (Quezon City regional trial court) this morning through his lawyer, attorney (Jude) Sabio. He was processed for release at the Camp Crame Custodial Center. Thereafter, around 3:30 p.m., my office has resumed providing protective custody to him,” Trillanes said.
The CHR yesterday said it respects the decision of the Senate committee on justice and human rights to end its probe on alleged extrajudicial killings that happened under the present administration.
“In the interest of justice, we will submit a written affidavit of the witnesses as suggested by (Sen. Richard Gordon),” CHR spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia said yesterday.
Gordon turned down requests for the presentation of additional CHR witnesses during the hearing on Thursday after he took offense at an earlier statement of CHR commissioner Roberto Cadiz, who supposedly called the senator a “coward” for not allowing the presentation of self-confessed hit man Matobato.
Gordon had sought an apology from Cadiz and called on CHR chairman Chito Gascon to disassociate the body from the statement of a “rogue” commissioner.
Cadiz has yet to respond to Gordon’s statement.
Earlier, the CHR maintained that the statements made by Cadiz were not representative of the entire body “as the commission en banc has not deliberated any position on the matter.”
“The commission respects the independence of the Senate and recognizes its authority to conduct hearings, in accordance with its own rules,” read the statement.
“The commission hopes that the Senate will come up with fair and credible results, cognizant of the latter’s independence and competence. The commission continues to be ready to assist the Senate and its committees in shedding light on matters pertaining to human rights,” it added.
De Guia said the commission will continue with its investigations on the alleged extrajudicial killings and is ready to provide assistance to any other forum that would seek to tackle the matter.
Meanwhile, Matobato was fetched by his lawyer Sabio from Camp Crame at around 3:22 p.m.
Matobato was ordered arrested by the Davao City court for failing to attend his arraignment last Oct. 6 in connection with the illegal possession of firearms and ammunition charges that were filed against him in 2014.
At the time of the arraignment, Matobato was in Manila as a resource person in connection with the Senate inquiry on extrajudicial killings in the country.
In the course of his testimonies, Matobato not only implicated a number of policemen in connection with the unsolved killings in Davao but also tagged Duterte as the brains behind the existence of the so-called DDS.
His lawyers have appealed to the Davao court to transfer the trial of Matobato’s case to Manila. – With Janvic Mateo, Jaime Laude