Duterte seeks extension of bloody war on drugs

Mr Duterte has asked for an extension for his self-imposed deadline of six months to rid the country of crime and drugs.

“Give me another six months”, he was quoted by Inquirer as saying.

President Rodrigo Duterte says he will wage his war on drugs at all costs.

Duterte made the statement in his remarks at the presentation of freed Norwegian hostage Kjartan Sekkingstad in Davao City, where he detailed the extent of the drug problem in the country.

But at the media briefing, he said: “Even if I wanted to, I can not kill them all because the last report would be this thick”, referring to a new, not yet published list of mostly public officials linked to the illegal drug trade.

Duterte had released two previous lists where he identified military and police officials, lawmakers and judges allegedly connected to the drug trade.

A law enforcement investigation, however, has turned up more names of people who are involved in the illegal drug trade, including many village leaders and mayors, Duterte said at the news conference.

The President said even the lowest government units have been infested with the narcotics trade.

Duterte added that the list was with him two months ago but he had ordered a “re-validation” to make sure it was accurate. Because I never have that idea of hundreds of thousands of people in the drug business.

Matabato said he was part of a death squad to kill drug dealers on orders from Duterte when the president was mayor of the city of Davao between 1988 and 2013.

Stopping crime and criminality in three to six months was Duterte’s major campaign promise last May. “I can not kill them all. even if I wanted to”, he told reporters.

Since July, over 700, 000 drug addicts had surrendered to authorities amid Duterte’s no-nonsense war on illegal drugs.

Senator Alan Cayetano, Duterte’s defeated running mate, claims Matobato is being used by the LP to remove Duterte so that Vice President Leni Robredo, who belongs to that party, can take over.

Protesters stage a “die-in” protest in August to dramatize the rising number of extrajudicial killings in Duterte’s drug war.

Duterte has repeatedly lambasted the USA and the United Nations for what he calls interference in his policies, particularly their criticism of the summary killings arising from his administration’s war on drugs.

But Duterte has repeatedly rebuffed their protests, oftentimes using harsh words to warn outsiders against interfering in the Philippines’ affairs.

President Barack Obama, UN officials and human rights watchdogs have raised concerns over the widespread killings.