MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine National Police (PNP) and supporters of a popular but controversial war on drugs may be itching for it to return but on Monday, February 27, when President Rodrigo Duterte and national police chief Ronald dela Rosa were asked about it they had a similar answer: It’ll be up to the other to decide.

“The President suspended us from taking part in the war on drugs. Wala kaming magagawa ngayon kundi maghintay sa kanyang reinstatement orders (We can’t do anything but to wait for his reinstatement orders),” said Dela Rosa on Monday during a press conference.

During a chance interview hours later, Duterte himself was asked if “Oplan Tokhang” – a “knock and plead” police operation that was among the pillars of the drugs war – would continued. Tokhang has resulted in the “surrender” of more than a million suspected drug users and pushers. Its legality, however, has been questioned before the courts.

“I don’t know. I would leave it to the PNP to decide. Anong kailangan nila (What they need), what they have to do to succeed. I do not meddle in the mechanism there,” said Duterte.

Seven months into a bloody drug war, Duterte ordered a stop on all police anti-illegal drugs operations. He also dissolved all Anti-Illegal Drugs Group (AIDG) units around the country. Duterte’s orders, announced during a late-night Sunday press conference, followed controversy surrounding the kidnap and murder of a South Korean businessman.

The kidnap and murder of Jee Ick Joo was supposedly masterminded and executed by AIDG police.

Prior to ordering a stop to police anti-illegal drugs operations, over 7,000 deaths had been associated with the drugs war. Police killed 2,555 drug suspects in police operations from July 1, 2016 to January 31, 2017. More deaths – over 3,603 as of January 9, 2017 – were listed as “deaths under investigation” or vigilante-style killings with possible links to illegal drugs.

Of over 3,600 cases, only 922 investigations had been concluded as of January 9.

The end of police involvement in the drug war, Dela Rosa claimed, has made the situation on the ground worse. “The other day I was in Kalinga, Apayao and yesterday I was in Zamboanga. All the local chief executives I spoke to, from barangay captain to mayor, government, they asked for nothing else but for the PNP to return to the war on drugs because the pushers and users in their area were again lording it over because the PNP didn’t care again,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino.

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, a staunch Duterte ally, made the same claim over the weekend during a vigil-rally in support of the President. He also called on Duterte and PNP to “relaunch” the war on drugs.

Duterte gave a non-committal answer when asked about Cayetano’s request. “Well, I said, look, give me for the men that I can trust to handle the campaign,” said the President.

Alluding to an Amnesty International report that claimed police were being paid to kill drug suspects, Duterte added: “Eh kung ganoon din, maibigay mo iyong mga pera, gaya nung nandoon na sa labas. Tapos hindi ibigay, hindi ibili iyong pera, tapos sabihin pa tuloy na binigyan sila ng pera para pumatay. Bakit ko kailangang bigyan sila ng pera para pumatay? Trabaho man nila iyan.”

(If they’re not trust worthy, it’s going to be useless. You give them money, the ones on the field. But they don’t use it, they won’t use the money. And some will claim they’re given money to kill. Why do I need to give them money to kill? That’s their job.)

Duterte had earlier said the PNP was “corrupt to the core,” referring to scalawag cops who were either involved in illegal drugs themselves or were using the war on drugs to make money.

“The longer we are out of the war on drugs, the situation is getting worse. The more that the problem will return. The gains from the first 7 months of the war on drugs will be put to waste,” said Dela Rosa.

Still, the former Davao City police chief yielded to the wisdom of the President, who was Davao City mayor for over two decades.

“The President might say I’m getting ahead of him. He might tell me to wait. The President is on top of the situation. He knows what’s going on in the entire country so we will just wait for his orders. I cannot tell him because he might say I’m too eager to return to the war on drugs. I don’t want that,” said Dela Rosa.

The PNP has since launched an “internal cleansing” campaign to rid itself of scalawags. – Rappler.com