Senator Bato Dela Rosa said imposing the death penalty on large-scale drug traffickers is more acceptable for him than allowing them to destroy the lives of thousands of Filipinos.
Dela Rosa, the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, reiterated his firm stand against illegal drugs and made a fresh push for his number 1 priority bill seeking the reimposition of the death penalty for high-level or large-scale drug trafficking crimes.
Under Senate Bill No. 198, authored by Dela Rosa, the death penalty shall be imposed on any person who commits large-scale illegal trafficking of dangerous drugs.
“‘Yung isang tao (drug trafficker) na nagpasok ng napakalaking halaga ng droga, napakalaking volume, ay ilang libo ang masisirang buhay, masisirang kinabukasan…So, dapat lang talaga, in order to save the lives of these napakaraming Pilipino, eh kailangan talagang mananagot itong isang tao na ito. I-save natin ‘yung maraming buhay…Dapat ito’y patawan ng bitay,” Dela Rosa said in an interview.
Under Senate Bill No. 198, authored by Dela Rosa, the death penalty shall be imposed on any person who commits large-scale illegal trafficking of dangerous drugs.
“‘Yung large-scale drug trafficking offenses, ‘yun ‘yung ating gustong patawan ng death penalty. Kasi isang drug trafficking activity lang, kung makapasok ‘yan ng grupo at bulsa-bulsang droga, ilang libong kabataan naman ang masisiraan ng bait niyan. Kung halimbawa, 10,000 na kabataan or kahit na matanda masiraan ng bait dahil diyan sa droga na ‘yan, ilan ngayon, i-multiply mo ‘yan kung ilan ang magiging biktima nila ‘pag sila ay lango sa pinagbabawal na droga? Mas marami. Maraming inosente na mabibiktima ‘yang mga adik na ‘yan. So gano’n po,” Dela Rosa said.
Section 3 of the bill states that large-scale illegal trafficking is committed by any person who illegally cultivates, cultures, delivers, manufactures, sells, trades, transports, distributes, imports, exports and possesses any dangerous drug and/or controlled precursor and essential chemical involving a quantity of not less than five kilos or more, unless authorized by law.
“Eh, ligal naman ‘yan (death penalty). Nakalagay naman ‘yan sa ating Saligang Batas na pwede tayong magpataw ng death penalty. So, ibalik natin ‘yan para matakot itong mga high-level drug traffickers na mag-traffic ng droga,” Dela Rosa said.
Together with his death penalty bill, the former top cop refiled some of his 18th Congress priority bills related to the war on drugs in the 19th Congress including the institutionalization of the Anti-Drug Abuse Councils (SBN 203) and Drug Abuse Prevention, Treatment and Rehabilitation (SBN 202).
