The co-chairs of the House Quad-Committee (quad-comm) expressed great confidence in their investigation findings and subsequent recommendations to government agencies after thoroughly exploring interconnected issues such as extrajudicial killings (EJK), illegal drugs, and illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO).
In the plenary session, the Quad-Committee's overall chairman, Robert Ace Barbers, representative of the second district of Surigao del Norte, submitted a progress report of the large panel.
This includes extensive recommendations, such as charging former President Rodrigo Duterte and his former senior aides Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa and Christopher "Bong" Go (now a senator) with crimes against humanity.
Bienvenido "Benny" Abante Jr., representative of the sixth district of Manila, emphasized in his sponsorship speech, "The moment of reckoning has come."
"If we think that because you are in power, you can do whatever you want without adhering to the constitution, then, Mr. Speaker, I want to say, these things will end, and you will be judged by the people," Abante said when discussing Duterte.
He told his colleagues, "The House of Representatives is the people's house, because we are all elected by the people, responsible for reviewing all anomalies occurring within the government."
Quad-Committee co-chair Abante stated that the committee's investigation results are well-supported by sufficient evidence to "propose necessary recommendations to the legislative body and relevant government agencies to take appropriate and decisive actions."
This senior legislator specifically pointed out that the Duterte administration is suspected of systemic human rights violations and blatant disregard for due process in the controversial drug war.
He emphasized that the so-called measures to solve the country's drug problem have instead created a culture of impunity, ignoring due process and human rights.
"God said, thou shalt not kill. But the drug war embodies a policy of killing, killing, killing. As the former president always said, shoot them," Bishop Soren pointed out.
Abante noted that Duterte's public statements and the "Davao model" bounty system led to numerous Filipino deaths.
Human rights organizations estimate that about 30,000 Filipinos died during the drug war.
Abante said, "As guardians of justice and representatives of the people, we have a moral and sacred duty to hold the perpetrators accountable and uphold the value of every human right."
Seeking Justice for POGO Victims
Dan Fernandez, the independent representative of Santa Rosa City and co-chair of the Quad-Community, acknowledged the group's achievements in combating illegal POGO participants.
"Those directly and indirectly involved in the operation of online gaming companies must pay the price. We cannot simply forget the past and move forward," Fernandez said in his sponsorship speech.
He added, "We hope that the executive branch, through our President Bongbong Marcos, will seek justice for the innocent people's families who are victims of these greedy scammers, whose sole purpose is to line their pockets with money from the Philippine gaming industry."
Based on the group's recommendations, further investigations will be conducted on certain individuals to determine their connections with illegal POGO and other criminal activities.
Individuals named include former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, POGO initiator Katherine Cassandra Li Ong, dismissed Bamban, Tarlac City Mayor Alice Guo, businessman Tony Yang, and Hongjiang Yang.
Fernandez pointed out that the Quad-Committee has proposed several measures based on the findings of previous hearings, such as the proposed Anti-Offshore Gaming Operations Act.
He stated that they are also pushing for amendments to the charter of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor), the Cybercrime Prevention Act, the SIM Card Registration Act, and others.
He explained, "We are cleaning up and eliminating the bad memories that linger in the minds of the people."
Formally Ending POGO
Regarding illegal online gaming companies, the Quad-Committee also investigated the situation of Chinese citizens forging Philippine nationality to acquire land in the country.
Joseph Stephen "Kalapus" Paduano, representative of the Abang Lingkod party-list and also a co-chair, stated that the expert group found that this modus operandi has long been uncontrolled.
Paduano mentioned that this is related to a network of illegal activities, posing significant threats to national security and the economy.
He said, "Through these legislative measures, we intend to strengthen our national security, maintain the integrity of our civil laws, and protect the Filipino people and our land from illegal foreign influences."
He continued, "By enacting these measures, we firmly resist foreigners and criminals exploiting our system and establish lasting solutions to safeguard the interests of the Filipino people."
