Atty. Democrito Barcenas
“HE can’t do that.”
Veteran Cebuano lawyer Democrito Barcenas cautioned President Rodrigo Duterte against declaring martial law if the drug problem in the country worsens.
Under the 1987 Philippine Constitution, he said the President can only declare martial law in cases of invasion or rebellion.
“Drug menace is not one of the grounds. He will be playing with fire if he does so,” said Barcenas, regional chair of the Free Legal Assistance Group, who was detained from September to December 1972 for standing up against the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.
Declaring martial law, he said, is not going to be easy for President Duterte.
“His statement that nobody can stop him is all bluster. He has to contend with the military whose loyalty he cannot be sure of and the Filipino people, 75 percent of whom are against martial law in the latest survey,” he told Cebu Daily News.
President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday threatened to declare martial law if the drug problem in the country will continue.
He said it is his duty to protect Filipinos from the menace of illegal drugs which reportedly affect four million people.
From July 1 to January 16, the administration’s relentless campaign against illegal drugs has, so far, resulted in the arrest of 45,464 drug suspects and the death of 6,299 others, both in police and vigilante-style killings.
President Duterte said it is possible he will declare martial law to preserve the nation regardless of what the Supreme Court or Congress will say.