Philippines police arrest president’s critic

Escorted by Senate Sergeant at Arms Jose Balajadia, De Lima left her Senate office past 8 a.m. and yielded to the authorities who served the arrest warrant against her.

The Senator, Leila de Lima, has fiercely denied the allegations since Duterte first levied them in August, describing them in a statement Friday as “manufactured stories” meant to make an example of her and “to intimidate, silence, and destroy anyone who dares challenge” Duterte.

De Lima was accused of receiving money from detained drug lords during her stint as justice secretary during the Aquino administration back in 2010 to 2015.

As justice secretary she prosecuted cases linked to the misuse of huge amounts of legislators’ so-called pork-barrel funds, and raided the country’s biggest prison to dismantle the perks accorded to inmates convicted of drug offences.

For human rights group Karapatan, De Lima is not the first political prisoner under Duterte.

The party also said it feared for De Lima’s life once she was arrested, citing the police killing of another politician, Rolando Espinosa, inside a jail cell in November a year ago after he was arrested on drug charges.

Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella called the arrest “a major step forward in the administration’s drugs war”.

Pangilinan also said De Lima has turned over her Senate work to her staff, some of whom joined her all the way to Camp Crame.

In the absence of an independent inquiry, it is hard to verify exactly how many extrajudicial killings have been carried out and by whom.

The senator also sought the opening of an investigation of Duterte’s alleged involvement in the so-called “Davao Death Squad”, when he was the mayor of the city for over two decades. Arthur Lascanas was the second professed hit man to level such accusations against the President.

Vice President Leni Robredo and other political allies expressed support to de Lima, saying she was being persecuted for criticizing the president.

“The Muntinlupa RTC has now acted on the case of Senator Leila de Lima“. The 57-year old stepped out of her Senate office to face arrest on a drug charge filed by the justice department.

She questioned why the court suddenly issued the arrest order when it was scheduled Friday to hear her petition to void the three non-bailable charges.

“The Philippines, under the leadership of President Rodrigo Duterte, is turning rapidly into an illiberal state, where there is no respect for the law whatsoever”, Baalen said.

Influential Catholic bishops denounced the crackdown earlier in February and tens of thousands of anti-Duterte demonstrators have taken to the streets.

Bonifacio Ilagan, who led one of the protests outside the police headquarters said, “We are taking the matter seriously”.

Mr. Duterte in 2016 was catapulted to presidency riding on a campaign against illegal drugs.