THE lead chair of the House Quad Comm on Tuesday said former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s controversial war on drugs was a “catastrophic failure” that allegedly entrenched corruption within the Philippine National Police (PNP), promoted impunity and led to widespread human rights abuses.
Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers backed Interior Sec. Jonvic Remulla’s claim of a “grand conspiracy” within the police force to hide criminal activities, calling it a long-overdue reckoning.
“While I supported the anti-drug campaign of the previous administration as a necessary response to a growing crisis, it is now undeniable that it became a catastrophic failure,” Barbers said.
“Instead of upholding justice, it opened the floodgates to corruption in the PNP, fostered a culture of impunity that left thousands of innocent lives destroyed, and even allowed recycled drugs to poison our streets again,” he added.
Barbers, who also chairs the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs, said the indictment of 30 police officers—including two generals—over a fabricated drug haul in 2022 is “indisputable proof” of the alleged systemic abuse fostered by Duterte’s policies.
“This only confirms what we in the Quad Comm have uncovered—the Duterte administration’s reward system turned law enforcement into a criminal enterprise. It prioritized kill statistics and inflated accomplishments over genuine reform and public safety,” he pointed out.
Remulla previously described the fabricated drug haul, falsely presented as a major anti-drug success, as part of a broader conspiracy to conceal the PNP’s criminal activities.
He announced that the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) would investigate drug-related operations from 2016 to 2022, focusing on the reward system exposed during Quad Comm hearings.
Testimonies from witnesses, including retired police colonel and former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager Royina Garma, revealed that Duterte’s administration offered cash rewards for drug suspects killed, arrests made and drugs seized.
Barbers echoed Remulla’s assertion that the reward system fostered widespread malpractice within the PNP.
“This reward system didn’t just encourage shortcuts—it bred criminal enterprises within the very institution tasked with upholding the law,” Barbers said.
“Officers fabricated evidence, inflated statistics, and exploited the system for personal profit, while those who should have been held accountable were shielded,” he stressed.
According to Barbers, the Duterte administration’s “reckless policies created the perfect storm for corruption.”
“By prioritizing kill statistics over accountability, he turned the PNP into a rogue organization that thrived on shortcuts and blood money,” he pointed out.
He continued: “This fabricated drug haul is not an isolated case—it’s a damning indictment of Duterte’s entire approach to governance.”
Barbers said that all those responsible for the damage caused by the Duterte administration’s policies must be held accountable.
The veteran lawmaker also called for comprehensive reforms to dismantle what he described as a “culture of impunity” within the PNP.
He stressed the importance of independent oversight for reward systems, stricter transparency mechanisms in police operations, and harsher penalties for extrajudicial killings.
“These reforms are not negotiable. We need to hold people accountable and prevent these atrocities from happening again. The days of unchecked abuse and corruption must end,” Barbers said.
Barbers said the indictment of the 30 officers involved in the fabricated drug haul must mark the beginning of a broader effort to hold perpetrators accountable.
He commended the DILG for its resolve to thoroughly investigate the full extent of the reward system and its role in Duterte’s drug war.
“This investigation is a critical moment for the country. It’s a chance to show that no one—not even the most powerful—is above the law. We must act decisively to deliver justice and restore public confidence,” Barbers said.
