The Presidential Palace clarified on Wednesday that President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has not yet issued any statement on the possible reinstatement of the death penalty for certain crimes.
Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro made the remark during a Presidential Communications Office press briefing on October 22, Wednesday.
Castro said any move to re-impose capital punishment would require careful study and should not be announced or implemented hastily. She emphasized that the measure must be examined within the broader context of the justice system’s safeguards.
“Sa ngayon, wala pa pong nababanggit ang Pangulo, pero siyempre sa pag-aaral po, kung ito po ay ipapataw muli at mawawala ang suspensyon o lifting ng death penalty, pag-impose ng death penalty, dapat pong aralin ito dahil hindi lamang po ito bigla-biglang sinasabi nandiyan na ang death penalty, inaaral mabuti dahil po dapat malinis, mabuti, maging maayos itong tinatawag nating Five Pillars of Justice System,” Castro said.
She also warned against letting public sentiment or past examples of wrongdoing unduly shape policy, urging that policy decisions be free from manipulation.
“Hindi po tayo puwede na umasa at maimpluwensyahan. Dapat mawala sa impluwensya ng mga Pilipino ‘yong mga nakaraang pangyayari kung saan may nag-admit na sila ay sanay gumawa ng intriga at magplanta ng ebidensya,” she added.
The Palace statement came after calls during a September 21 anti-corruption protest for harsher penalties, including the return of the death penalty, for proven corrupt officials.
Television host and comedian Vice Ganda drew significant attention when, during the demonstration, the celebrity urged the reinstatement of capital punishment and made an inflammatory remark: “Ikulong ang mga magnanakaw. Para nga sa’kin, hindi sapat ang kulong eh. Dapat patayin ang mga korap na magnanakaw. Ibalik ang death penalty para sa mga korap,para patayin ang mga magnanakaw, ikulong pati pamilya nila!”