PNP maintains war on drugs a 'necessity' | ABS-CBN

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PNP maintains war on drugs a 'necessity'

PNP maintains war on drugs a 'necessity'

ABS-CBN News

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Updated Jun 30, 2017 09:13 PM PHT

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Jocelyn stands near the casket at the wake of her husband, Cesar Carillo, Friday, dawn. He was abducted by masked men on June 6, then a day later, he was found dead, his body showing signs of torture. Carillo was one of two suspected victims of drug related killings in Navotas June, 9, 2017 Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

MANILA- “What happened was a necessity.”

A year since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office, his top cop maintains the necessity of the campaign that launched the Philippines in the international stage anew—the war on drugs.

“What happened was a necessity para magbago, a necessity element for the change we’ve been looking for,” Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa said Friday.

The police have been the lead agency in Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign with its series of “Oplan Tokhang” (knock and plead) operations throughout the country. Police officers knock at the homes of suspected drug peddlers and users and plead for them to surrender.

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The campaign has earned praises and criticism from different sectors locally and internationally. It has also earned the PNP allegations of abuses, particularly extrajudicial killings.

Police data shows that nearly 3,000 drug suspects have died in presumed legitimate police operations in Duterte's campaign against illegal drugs.

Out of 9,432 homicide cases from July 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017, or the first nine months of the Duterte administration, 1,847 have been found to be drug-related, with 5,691 cases under investigation.

Duterte's anti-narcotics drive has also resulted in a 26.45 percent drop in the estimated total drug market and a 28.57 percent reduction in index crimes, according to police data.

Though controversial, the campaign has improved the security climate said Dela Rosa, noting that he has heard stories of Filipinos saying they felt safer to walk in the streets.

“If we did not declare war on drugs, this problem could not be addressed, could not be unmasked, could not be uncovered,” Dela Rosa said.

National Capital Region Police Office Regional Director Oscar Albayalde said the campaign is simply a fulfillment of Duterte’s campaign promise.

“I think he’s (Duterte) making good [on] his promise with regards to his war on drugs. He’s very serious on this and this has direct effects on the different crimes that has been going on or that are being committed particularly here in Metro Manila,” he said.

DIFFERENT APPROACH?

Asked if the police plan to take on the narcotics problem as a public health issue as other sectors have called for, Dela Rosa said that he, as a police officer, has to look at the problem from his own perspective.

“…For me, being a police officer, I must treat the problem from my own point of view. Being a police officer, that's a problem on criminality,” he said.

“We feel that the problem is ours. Lately, nakita natin na kailangan the problem should be addressed by the whole of government approach and, lately, [the] whole nation,” he added.

The PNP chief, however, welcomes help from the Department of Health in approaching the problem as a health concern.

“Siguro dapat DOH na ang mag-treat ng problem as a health problem,” he said.

NO MERCY

Under Duterte’s leadership, the police force has been hounded by several controversies such as corruption, involvement in the drug trade, and abuse of power. But throughout all of these, the PNP has enjoyed the backing of the president.

Albayalde said Duterte's support for the police should not be taken as a signal to commit abuses.

“I think it’s within the limits of the law. Hindi niya (Duterte) ibig sabihin na when you violate the law, you still have his back,” Albayalde said, adding that he believes the police have not abused their power because of the president’s assurance of protection.

Dela Rosa, on the other hand, maintained that he has “no mercy” for erring cops.

“I think I am the chief PNP who has dismissed a lot of people already in so short a time,” he said.

“I have no mercy as far as itong mga erring personnel, mga ninja cops, itong mga personnel ng PNP na involved sa sindikato, I have no mercy for them. I have to hit them head on,” he said.

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World

US TikTok ban looms as Trump seeks last-ditch solution

US TikTok ban looms as Trump seeks last-ditch solution

Agence France-Presse,

Alex Pigman

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US president-elect Donald Trump gestures at supporters after speaking as he holds hands with former US First Lady Melania Trump during an election night event at the West Palm Beach Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, early on November 6, 2024. Jim Watson, AFP/FileUS president-elect Donald Trump gestures at supporters after speaking as he holds hands with former US First Lady Melania Trump during an election night event at the West Palm Beach Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, early on November 6, 2024. Jim Watson, AFP/File

WASHINGTON -- TikTok says it will "go dark" in the United States on Sunday, threatening access to the app for 170 million users, unless the government provides assurances that a law mandating its sale or ban won't be used to punish service providers.

After months of legal tussles, the US Supreme Court on Friday upheld a law that would ban the popular video-sharing platform in the name of national security, unless its Chinese owners reach an 11th-hour deal to sell it to non-Chinese buyers by Sunday.

Only months after overwhelmingly backing the law, lawmakers and officials were now fretting about the ban, with all eyes on whether US President-elect Donald Trump can swoop in and find a way to save the app.

From teenage dancers to grandmothers sharing cooking tips, TikTok has been embraced for its ability to transform ordinary users into global celebrities when a video goes viral.

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It is also appreciated by Trump, who has credited the app with connecting him to younger voters, contributing to his election victory in November.

Trump discussed TikTok with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday and said he would need more time to find a solution.

"My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation. Stay tuned!" Trump said in a social media post.

Late on Friday, however, TikTok said its US services would "go dark" unless the Biden administration "immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement" of the law calling for the platform's ban.

The administration of outgoing President Joe Biden, who leaves office on Monday, has said it will leave the matter to Trump's incoming government.

After the court defeat, TikTok CEO Shou Chew appealed to Trump, thanking him for his "commitment to work with us to find a solution."

Trump "truly understands our platform," he added.

TikTok has been lobbying furiously to thwart the law's implementation, with Chew set to attend Trump's inauguration on Monday.

The law requires Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores, blocking new downloads. The companies could face penalties of up to $5,000 per user who can access the app.

Oracle, which hosts TikTok's servers, would also be under legal obligation to enforce the ban.

None of the companies responded to requests for comment.

- Offers for TikTok -

The law allows a 90-day delay if the White House can show progress toward a viable deal, but TikTok owner ByteDance has flatly refused any sale.

Frank McCourt, the former Los Angeles Dodgers owner, has made an offer to purchase TikTok's US activity and said he's "ready to work with the company and President Trump to complete a deal."

Canadian investor Kevin O'Leary, who is involved in that offer, told Fox News that ByteDance was offered $20 billion for TikTok's US operation.

He acknowledged the legal uncertainty over the case, with it remaining an open question whether an executive order by Trump to halt the ban would override the law.

"Congress wrote this law to be virtually president-proof," warned Adam Kovacevich, chief executive of industry trade group Chamber of Progress.

Sarah Kreps, professor of government and law at Cornell University, said, "If an executive order conflicts with an existing law, the law takes precedence, and the order can be struck down by the courts."

If TikTok is forced into a shutdown, its US-based rivals Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts would benefit.

Thousands of worried TikTok users have protectively turned to Xiaohongshu ("Little Red Book"), a Chinese social media network similar to Instagram.

Nicknamed "Red Note" by its American users, it was the most downloaded app on the US Apple Store this week.

© Agence France-Presse

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