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Davao City Archbishop Romulo Valles said the government police should not only be condemned in carrying out the government’s anti-drug war but the public should “inspire” them to do their job according to the rule of law.

“We will not forget the killings. That is terrible. But one side of it is we will inspire the police to do their jobs according to the book,” Valles told reporters after a special Mass he celebrated at the San Pedro Cathedral last Sunday.

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“Push, inspire not condemn [the] police so they will do better in their police work,” the newly-elected President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said.

The Mass was offered in observance of the National Children’s Month that carries the theme, “Bata Iligtas sa Droga.

Valles’ statement came on the same day that the CBCP initiated “Lord Heal Our Land Sunday” where various organizations gathered at the Edsa Shrine in Quezon City.

The bishops called to “stop the killings, start the healing” and highlighted the extrajudicial killings committed under the Duterte government’s campaign against illegal drugs. Human rights groups said there are already 13,000 cases of extrajudicial killings in the country, while the police estimated there are about 4,000 deaths related to anti-illegal drugs operations.

Valles said between the proliferation of drugs and the issue of extrajudicial killings in the country, drug use comes primary when it comes to killing people.

“I think we have to first address the problem of drugs. Drug kills, not only EJK. Parang number two na na,” he said. Valles described drug use as killing people “silently.”

“It’s very sad to have the count of killings, but I also wish you do calculations how many lives were destroyed by drugs, how many were killed by drugs,” he said. (davaotoday.com)

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