Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) officiates the closing Mass for the National Conference of Seminary Formators at the IC3 Convention Center.
(CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)
As the third wave of Oplan Tokhang resumes on Monday, the president of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) called on all policemen in the country to follow standard operating procedures in dealing with drug suspects.
“As much as possible, let us try to avoid any bloodshed,” Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles told Cebu Daily News in an interview after he presided over the closing Mass of the National Conference of Seminary Formators at the IC3 Convention Center in Cebu City yesterday.
Valles asked the people to pray for all policemen that they may be guided by their conscience in reimplementing the Tokhang across the country.
“I hope our policemen will follow the proper procedures as they try to do their responsibilities. Let us pray and inspire them to make the right approach in arresting persons they think violated the law,” he said.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) recently announced the resumption of the controversial Oplan Tokhang, an anti-drug scheme where police knock on the doors of drug suspects and convince them to surrender, as part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s ferocious crackdown on the narcotics trade.
Under the new guidelines, officers from the Philippine National Police (PNP) will visit houses of suspected drug users and peddlers in broad daylight — anytime between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. — and only on weekdays.
Home visits can be watched live online.
Drug raids can still be conducted at night but policemen are required to wear body cameras as soon as the equipment are available.
Based on the report of New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), at least 12,000 persons were killed in the government’s war on drugs since President Duterte assumed his post in July 2016.
The PNP, however, claimed that only close to 4,000 drug suspects were killed in what they considered as legitimate operations across the country.
President Duterte earlier lashed out against Catholic Church leaders and human rights advocates for criticizing his war on drugs.
But early this month, Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the administration is open to a dialogue with the Church especially following the assumption of Valles as the new president of the CBCP in December 2017.
The 66-year-old prelate, who once advised the President to not only stop using cuss words in his speeches but also to pray the rosary everyday, served as Davao archbishop since May 2012 when Mr. Duterte was still the city mayor.
“We talked to each other (once in a while). Of course, we’re both from Davao. We have a good relationship so to speak,” Valles said.
Valles will lead the 116th Plenary Assembly of the CBCP in Cebu from January 27 to 29, 2018.
The collegial body of bishops is set to discuss a variety of topics, including the preparations for the 500th anniversary of the arrival of Christianity in the country in 2021.