Walang katuturan ang sinasabing maaaring patalsikin ni Pangulong Duterte sa paglalabas niya sa narco-list ng mga pulitikong sangkot umano sa ilegal na droga.
Ito ang ipinahayag ni Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo matapos na saibihin ni Akbayan partylist representative Tom Villarin na ang paglalabas ni Pangulong Duterte ng listahan ng narco-politicians ay may karampatang ipeachment dahil sa paglabag sa Konstitusyon.
Sa kanyang pahayag, sinabi ni Panelo na hindi alam ni Villarin ang kanyang sinasabi.
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"[It] has no legal and factual basis. In other words, it’s pure nonsense," sinabi niya nitong Sabado ng umaga.
"The opposition party-list congressman is quick to respond to an issue of unfamiliar terrain to a non-lawyer like him," dagdag niya.
Ayon kay Panelo, ang pagsisiwalat ng Pangulo ng mga personalidad sa narcolist ay maaaring ikumpara sa paglalabas ng listahan ng mga criminal suspect, idinagdag na kinasuhan na ang mga ito.
"For the legal education of Rep. Villarin, the appropriate charges have already been filed against the personalities contained in the list before the Office of the Ombudsman affording them their right to due process and an opportunity to clear their names before competent authorities," aniya.
"The release of their names is nothing more than a release of the names of criminal suspects. Such act cannot be considered a legal transgression, and even more so, an impeachable offense," dagdag niya.
Sinabi rin ng Palace official na karapatan ng mamamayan na malaman kung sino ang mga sangkot sa droga.
"To the further legal enlightenment of Villarin, it is hornbook doctrine that in construing laws or constitutional provisions, one must harmonize the same with other dictates of the law pursuant to the legal maxim: 'Interpretare et concordare leges legibus est optimus interpretandi modus,'" pahayag ni Panelo.
"It is paramount that the individual liberties of our citizens should be harmonized with the entire Filipino people’s right to the preservation and protection of their welfare, as well as their right to information on matters of national significance," dagdag niya.
Sinabi niya na responsibilidad ng Pangulo na protektahan ang bansa at ang paglalabas ng narcolist ang isa sa mga paraan.
"The drug menace has evolved into a national security problem as it threatens to destroy the very foundation of society. The President as head of the state is constitutionally commanded to serve and protect the nation," ayon kay Panelo.
"Individual rights are subordinate to the state’s right to protect itself from its enemies that seek to destroy it. The people’s right to safety prevails over the individual rights of persons piercing and destroying the security net that protects the citizenry," dugtong niya.
"It is the failure of the President to perform his constitutional duty of serving and protecting the people that makes him liable to impeachment for such omission is culpable violation of the Constitution and a betrayal of the public trust," pagpapatuloy niya.
Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos
