The Duterte administration is gearing up to intensify its campaign against crime and illegal drugs in the country, Malacañang announced on Thursday, June 7.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said this in a Palace press briefing, in line with President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s latest pronouncement that he would be making “radical changes” in public order and security.
Roque explained that the President was concerned with the recent spate of crime incidents in the country, including the deaths of two government prosecutors and the reported increase in the number of hold-up cases in Metro Manila.
“Nahabag talaga ang Presidente sa mga balitang ito. Feeling ko pinaka-nahabag siya doon sa balitang buntis sinaksak ng isang drug addict,” he said.
The Palace official said President Duterte believes there is still room for improvement as far as public order and safety are concerned, although recent data would show that crimes in the country declined since he took office.
“The President reiterated that while we have been combating crime and prohibited drugs since Day 1 of his administration, apparently, we can do more,” Roque stressed.
“So ‘yung kanyang sinabi po na abangan ang mga reporma, ‘yan po ay dahil nais pa niyang paigtingin… ang giyera laban sa kriminalidad at pinagbabawal na droga,” he added.
The Spokesperson noted that he had discussed the matter with Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Oscar Albayalde, who is awaiting further instructions from the President.
Meanwhile, Roque fired back at human rights groups critical of the President for continuously attacking his administration’s policies against illegal drugs while ignoring the plight of victims of drug addicts and criminals.
“Sa mula’t mula, ito naman ang sinasabi ng Presidente. Nasaan ‘yung mga human rights [groups] sa kasong gaya nito na sinaksak ang isang limang buwang buntis na prosecutor ng isang drug addict? Bakit wala tayong naririnig ngayon sa mga human rights,” he stressed.
‘PH employment reaches 94.5%’
During the same press briefing, Malacañang welcomed a report made by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), which placed the country’s employment rate at 94.5 percent for the month of April 2018.
Secretary Roque said the preliminary results of PSA’s April 2018 Labor Force Survey (LFS) showed that 40.9 million Filipinos are currently employed, easing the country’s unemployment rate down to 5.5 percent.
This is the lowest recorded rate for all the April rounds of the LFS in the past decade, he added.
Furthermore, the Palace announced that the Nikkei Philippines Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) reported a growth of 53.7 for the month of May, which is higher compared to 52.7 in April.
This makes the Philippines the second best performer in the entire Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, and fourth among the 18 Asian countries measured.
According to Roque, the report noted the improved demand conditions, new business expansion, and increased purchasing activity of the country as factors leading to the growth. (PCO-Content)
