FULL STATEMENT: Emotional Garma says cash reward-driven drug war was Duterte's idea
Retired police colonel and former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina Garma has accused former president Rodrigo Duterte of spearheading a national drug war model driven by cash rewards.
Garma made the shocking revelations in the form of a four-page affidavit during the marathon hearing of the House quad-committee (quad-comm) on Friday night, Oct. 11.
READ MORE: https://mb.com.ph/2024/10/11/cash-reward-driven-drug-war-was-duterte-s-idea
Garma made the shocking revelations in the form of a four-page affidavit during the marathon hearing of the House quad-committee (quad-comm) on Friday night, Oct. 11.
READ MORE: https://mb.com.ph/2024/10/11/cash-reward-driven-drug-war-was-duterte-s-idea
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NewsTranscript
00:00On September 12, 2024 and September 27, 2024, I was invited to serve as a resource person
00:11during the recent legislative inquiry conducted by the Joint Committee on Drugs.
00:23During these hearings, I was asked several questions concerning my knowledge or involvement
00:27in the deaths of three Chinese inmates at the Davao Penal Colony and the death of General
00:33Wesley Barayuga, all focusing on the alleged extrajudicial killings of the aforementioned
00:38individuals.
00:40I was also questioned about my relationship with the former president, as well as my career
00:46as a police officer and my tenure as the GM of the Philippine Charity Ship Stakes Office.
00:51Throughout the hearings, I answered questions from the committee based on my personal knowledge
00:58However, I did so with great apprehension, as I recognized that my statements on national
01:03television could significantly endanger my life, the safety of my family, and others
01:10close to me.
01:12After considerable reflection, I am now executing this affidavit to provide a comprehensive
01:19information to the QUADCOM regarding everything I personally know about the war on drugs during
01:27the former administration.
01:32On May of 2016, I received a call from then-President Rodrigo Duterte at approximately 5 in the
01:42morning instructing me to meet him at his residence in Doña Luisa, Davao City.
01:50I was already acquainted with then-Mayor Duterte, having served as a station commander in one
01:59of the police stations in Davao during his tenure.
02:03During our meeting, he requested that I locate a PNP officer or operative who is a member
02:11of the Iglesia Ni Cristo, indicating that he needed someone capable of implementing
02:19the war on drugs on a national scale, replicating the Davao model.
02:27The Davao model referred to the system involving payment and rewards.
02:34The Davao model involves three levels of payment of rewards.
02:39The first is the reward if the suspect is killed.
02:42Second is the funding of planned operations.
02:46Third is the refund of operational expenses.
02:51Initially I informed the President that I was unaware of any individual with those qualifications
02:58as I had not been assigned outside of Davao, nor had I served in a national capacity with
03:05the PNP.
03:07However, I recalled my upperclassman, Edilberto Leonardo, who was handling the Criminal Investigation
03:16Detection Group and was also a member of the Iglesia Ni Cristo.
03:22I mentioned his name to the President.
03:26On the same day, a certain individual named Mooking contacted me by the phone to request
03:33Leonardo's contact details, which I promptly provided.
03:38A week later, I learned from Arthur Narsolis via phone call that Leonardo had been summoned
03:46and was instructed to proceed to Royal Mandaya Hotel for a meeting.
03:54Leonardo informed me that he stayed at the hotel for three days, during which the President
04:00directed him to organize a task force similar to PAOC-TF.
04:07When Leonardo relayed this information and urged me to join the task force, I declined,
04:13citing my lack of experience in handling such operations.
04:18Leonardo subsequently informed me that he had prepared a proposal routed through Bongo,
04:26outlining the task force operations which would encompass Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.
04:35He also inquired if he and his classmates could have a courtesy call with the President
04:41through Bongo for a photo opportunity.
04:44Considering this, I thought it would be prudent also to invite my classmates, Bacay, Vilela,
04:52Grijaldo, Tuzon, and Duenas to join the courtesy call.
04:58The members of Class 97 and Class 96 of PNPA were accommodated in a separate room at the
05:07TPWH office in Panacan, Davao.
05:11The President did not enter our room, and I was unaware if he visited the room of Class
05:1796.
05:18This is 96, not 97.
05:22After the courtesy call, Leonardo informed me that the structure of the intended task
05:27force would undergo changes.
05:30In June of 2016, Leonardo was transferred from Manila to assume the position of the
05:35chief of the CIDG in Region XI.
05:41During the initial three months of this assignment, I facilitated all meetings between Leonardo
05:47and Bongo at Leonardo's request.
05:52Subsequently, they established direct communications.
05:58Leonardo informed me that he had recalled several trusted personnel, namely, I met Lester
06:06Bergano, Romel Bakhtat, Rodel Serbo, Michael Palma, and Peter Parungo to serve as operatives
06:15for the task force.
06:17Notably, Romel Bakhtat, Rodel Serbo, and Michael Palma were all discharged as police officers.
06:25Romel Bakhtat and Romel Serbo, Michael Palma were all former police officers stationed
06:32at CIDG XI office.
06:36They were discharged from service on or about a year ago due to an operation that led to
06:42the killing of one individual.
06:45Lester Bergano is a private citizen, while Peter Parungo was a former detainee in CIDG
06:53due to a charge of rape that has been cleared.
06:58Romel Bakhtat, Rodel Serbo, Michael Palma, and Peter Parungo were charged with the task
07:05force of collecting, verifying information provided by police officers in the field concerning
07:14arrests or deaths of individuals named in the list of drug personalities and creating
07:22a summary report.
07:24All of these reports would then be encoded, compiled by Lester Bergano.
07:32The compilation is thereafter elevated to Leonardo, who will then decide what level
07:39the arrest or killing was and its corresponding reward.
07:47Rewards were only given for killings, while for arrests only the funding of the COPLAN
07:53and a refund for the expenses was given.
07:59I saw how this individual operated when I would visit the CIDG office in Region XI to
08:06see my friend Lot Lot.
08:10He also conveyed to me that the task force would be structured differently, in that he
08:16submitted a document to Bongo detailing the task force operation, including an overview
08:23of the current drug landscape in the Philippines.
08:29I was also informed that the drug structure originated from Bucor, where numerous drug
08:35lords are currently incarcerated, and that it has three branches, Luzon, Visayas, and
08:42Mindanao, with Peter Lim involved in the Visayas region.
08:50Once the task force became operational, I later learned that all COPLAN funds, refunds
09:01for operational expenses, and rewards for agents were processed through the bank accounts
09:10of Peter Parungo at Metro Bank BDO and PS Bank.
09:17Concurrently, Lester Bergano maintained a comprehensive list of the drug personalities
09:23in the Philippines.
09:27Leonardo conducted briefings for ORPIDEA, IG, regional directors, and PNP chiefs regarding
09:37the operations.
09:39Additionally, if any individual died during police operation, Leonardo would report the
09:47incident to Bongo for inclusion in his weekly report and request for refunds of operational
09:55expenses.
09:58Leonardo had the final authority to determine who would be included on the list of drug
10:06personalities, and to classify their threat levels, as well as the discretion to remove
10:14individuals from the list.
10:17Furthermore, in 2016, when I was at the CIDG office, following up on personal appointments,
10:27I overheard Superintendent Padilla of Bucor discussing drug activities at the Davao Penal
10:40Colony with Leonardo.
10:44Padilla specifically mentioned certain Bucor officers involved in the drug trade, notably
10:52mentioning an officer named Ginto, who was subsequently killed, along with other Bucor
10:59members.
11:00These are the critical facts I personally know regarding the drug war of the previous
11:08administration.
11:11I am prepared to provide additional details and information in the supplemental affidavit
11:19or during an executive session at the discretion of the committee.
11:24I affirm the truthfulness and accuracy of the above statement to assist in the investigation
11:33by the Joint Committee on Dangerous Drugs, Public Order and Safety, Human Rights, and
11:40Public Accounts of the Honorable House of Representatives, the QUADCOM, Mr. Chair.