PNP: No shoot-to-kill order vs Bato dela Rosa

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The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday denied reports that it had issued a shoot-to-kill order against Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.

“May I remind the public that only share or believe information coming from verified and official sources. Wala pong shoot-to-kill order na inilabas,” PNP spokesperson Police Colonel Allen Rae Co told reporters in an interview.

(May I remind the public that only share or believe information coming from verified and official sources. No shoot-to-kill order has been issued.)

Co pointed out that the PNP would carry out its operations against Dela Rosa within the bounds of the law.

In a separate statement, PNP chief Police General Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. also stressed that the police do not subscribe to a shoot-to-kill approach in serving arrest warrants.

“The PNP does not subscribe to a shoot-to-kill approach. Our mandate is to enforce the law, not to take the law into our own hands. Every operation must be guided by due process, respect for human rights, and the rule of law,” Nartatez said.

All operations must observe maximum restraint, proportionality, and respect for human rights, according to the PNP.

Due process

This came after Cagayan de Oro 1st District Representative Lordan Suan denied social media posts falsely attributing to him a supposed call for a shoot-to-kill resolution against Dela Rosa.

“It has come to my attention that several social media pages are amplifying a false and malicious statement falsely attributed to me,” Suan earlier said in a Facebook post on Monday.

“The quote circulating online claiming I threatened a House hearing and a ‘shoot-to-kill’ resolution against Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa is FALSE, FAKE, FABRICATED. I never made that statement. I stand firmly for due process and the rule of law,” he added.

Dela Rosa is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with the crimes against humanity case arising from former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs.

The senator is accused of being a co-perpetrator in the alleged crimes.

Earlier, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) claimed that Dela Rosa was hiding in Mindanao under the protection of an “armed and powerful group,” but did not identify the group.

A P50-million reward is being offered for information that would lead to the senator’s arrest.