Bill eyes death penalty for corruption

By Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio, Reporter

A BILL seeking to impose the death penalty by firing squad on government officials convicted of graft and corruption by the Philippines’ anti-graft court was filed at the House of Representatives last week.

House Bill No. 11211 proposes to reinstate the death penalty for all public officials convicted of graft and corruption, misuse of public funds and plunder, including the president, barangay officials, appointed bureaucrats and members of the state’s security and police forces.

“The bill emphasizes accountability and deterrence, making it clear that public office is a public trust, and any violation of that trust must be met with the severest consequences,” Zamboanga City Rep. Khymer Adan T. Olaso, who authored the bill, said in its explanatory note.

“This act applies to all public officials, whether elected or appointed, including officials in the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, as well as those serving in constitutional commissions, government-owned and controlled corporations, and other instrumentalities,” the bill stated. “It also applies to members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police.”

The Philippines abolished the death penalty under the 1987 Constitution, but it was reinstated in 1993 by then-President Fidel V. Ramos to address rising crime rates.

The administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo terminated the death penalty in 2006, after she signed into law Republic Act No. 9346, which reduced the maximum punishment to life imprisonment.

“While the death penalty was previously abolished under Republic Act No. 9346, the gravity of corruption as a crime against society justifies the reintroduction for specific heinous offenses,” according to the bill’s note.

Mr. Olaso said the bill is not punitive but rather meant to deter corruption and restore trust in government institutions.

The state would only execute public officials whose convictions are affirmed by the Supreme Court and have exhausted all available legal remedies, he added.

“These safeguards aim to uphold the fundamental rights of the accused while ensuring that the imposition of the death penalty is applied only in cases where guilt is conclusively established,” the bill stated.

Five other measures seeking the reinstatement of the death penalty are also pending at the House.

“The Philippines has a strong anti-death penalty position,” Carlos H. Conde, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch, said via WhatsApp. “This bill, if taken seriously, will mean the Philippines would slide backwards.”

Last week, the Philippines supported a United Nations (UN) resolution calling for a moratorium on the death penalty. The resolution was adopted by the UN General Assembly, with 130 member-states in favor, 32 opposed, and 22 abstentions.

“The country also signed and ratified the second optional protocol against the death penalty in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” said Mr. Conde.

There is also no evidence indicating that the death penalty would deter corrupt practice, he added. “Corruption persists in the Philippines because corrupt government officials are rarely being punished.”

“It seems clear that it is designed for politicking more than anything else,” he said.