Rizal 2nd District Rep. Fidel Nograles decried the recent killing of a Manila prosecutor, the 50th victim of deadly attacks on law practitioners since 2016, and reiterated the need for the creation of a special task force composed of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to address the murders.
Jovencio Senados, the inquest division chief of Manila City Prosecutor’s Office, was gunned down while on his way to work on Tuesday.
“Failure to protect our law practitioners will discourage our people from obtaining justice.”
“I urge our authorities to exhaust all means to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice. We cannot allow such blatant disregard of our laws,” Nograles, a Harvard-trained lawyer, said.
Last year, Nograles filed House Resolution No. 185 calling for an inquiry into the deaths of law practitioners.
The said resolution also urges the creation by the DOJ and PNP, in close coordination with the CHR and IBP, of a special task force that would enforce legal action to bring those accountable for the deaths to justice.
Nograles said that the murder of lawyers, prosecutors, and judges has a chilling effect on the proper dispensation of justice in the country.
“Failure to protect our law practitioners will discourage our people from obtaining justice.”
“The government cannot allow such thinking to prevail.”
“Kung pati ang mga tagapagtanggol ng batas ay kayang paslangin ng makapangyarihan, paano na lang ang karaniwang tao,” the solon said.
He added that the government cannot allow such thinking to prevail.
“We need immediate action and results to assure our people that they can seek redress in our legal system without fear of reprisal.”