Death Penalty Never Lifted In Davao City

The whole country may be going agog over Senator Miguel Zubiri's proposal to reimpose the Death Penalty for drug pushers but it turns out that it was never lifted at all in Davao City. This was the admission made by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte during his "Gikan sa Masa, Para sa Masa" program yesterday.

The revival of the Death Penalty law is again being discussed in light of the drug payoff issue involving the Alabang Boys as well as heinous crimes like the bloody robbery of RCBC in Cabuyao Laguna last year which left 10 people dead.

"There was already an attempt to corrupt Davao City and there was even a laboratory set up here already (the one raided by operatives in Dumoy, Toril last December 2004)," Duterte said. Those involved, Jed Pilapil-Sy (wife of suspected druglord and fugitive Allan Sy) as well as her brother Jessie Jones Pilapil were sentenced by Judge Romeo Albarracin to life imprisonment and were ordered to pay a $5 million fine. Allan Sy is however still at large.

Duterte said corruption really exists in the country especially when it comes to drugs "Kapila na naay raid unya ang maabtan sa pulis aparatus lang wala na ang tao ug ang shabu---unsa pa man tawag diha kung dili corruption (how many times have the raiding teams arrived at a reported drug den and laboratory only to find out only the aparatus remained and the pushers and shabu no longer there)."

"I support PDEA's Santiago and Marcelino---continue the good work and tell the truth because corruption does exist," he said.

Duterte said if the government will not provide a legal means of putting these drug users and pushers to justice then people can always find a way to deal with them extra judicially. Anyway, he said, "death penalty has never been lifted in Davao."

Multi Billionaires In Davao City?

I'm warning you, this is a rant. A rant about a few people living in Davao City (although they can also be living in Cotabato, in the United States, HongKong or anywhere in the world that their millions and their fancy takes them) who can live like money is not a problem at all, amidst worldwide poverty.

I am talking of the people who can spend P5,000, P10,000 a day just for their kid's allowance. I am talking about people who can afford to buy expensive shirts, bags and what-have-you's for five of their friends whenever they go to SM City or Manila or even HongKong. I am talking about people who can afford to buy Troopers, Pajeros and other expensive cars for each of their kids, to service then when they go to their schools, shop around or just go around the city wasting diesel at P37 or gasoline at P47 per liter. I wonder why each kid should have a car when a single car can fetch them all at the same time; must be one of the problems of being too rich for comfort.

And I am not talking about people who sweat their butts off (or typing their fingers away just like me ha!ha!) trying to earn an honest living. I am talking about people who do not work hard at all, some do not even work at all. I am talking about people in government whose legal salaries can be estimated at only P20k to P25k per month. I am talking about people whose families have been linked to the list of drug lords released by PDEA but have remained FREE and able to enjoy their riches UP TO NOW.

Perhaps, their lives are what drams are made of. Perhaps, we should not send our children to pre-schools (where we spend P30-P40 per year) at all where they will learn to become intelligent but not wise enough to amass wealth when they grow big and strong. Perhaps. we should just train to become drug dealers and drug pushers and drug lords so we can live a comfortable life.

So, you are afraid of the consequences if you get involved in drugs. WHAT CONSEQUENCES? These people are still ALIVE and KICKING and living the good life! Just make sure you get a comfortable position in government and be on top of the distribution channel so you won't get in trouble with the DDS-Davao Death Squad or some other groups killing small time drug users and pushers.

Otherwise, you have to be content eating 3-meals a day (if you're lucky!) of tuyo, eggs, more eggs, cheap chicken or cheap vegetables (although their prices have risen too!), riding jeepneys alongside sweaty passengers (who just like you can only afford P7 for fare) instead of a taxi or even a posh Black Pajero and saving P65 so that you and your child (less the father since he is an additional expense) can watch movies once in a blue moon.

But who said lfe was fair?

PDEA: All Talk, No Teeth In Fight VS Drug Lords

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency or PDEA has once again released the names of the alleged 5 drug lords in Maguindanao. Almost the same names have been released by Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte in 2006 but no one has been arrested up to now.

PDEA Central Mindanao chief Amado Tana identified the five drug lords as: Sultan Kudarat (Marcos Fatima Baliwan and Black Moro), North Cotabato (Maghanoy), Maguindanao (Montawal) and Cotabato City (Kagui Lao). Of the five, Tana said, only Black Moro has been neutralized.

Cotabato Anti-Drug Task Force chairman Cotabato Vice Governor Manny Piñol castigated the PDEA for its failure to arrest and have the drug lords convicted in court despite the fact that they have already been identified. The drug enforcers do not even have photos of the suspected drug lords.