Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte filed a resolution last Wednesday in the House of Representatives seeking a nationwide probe into extrajudicial killings (EJKs) and human rights in the country since 25 years ago.

In House Resolution (HR) 1745, the solon urged the lower chamber to probe Manila City, Quezon City, and Cebu City which he cited had the highest cases of human and extrajudicial killings based on data from the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

Duterte also cited reports from the US State Department and Amnesty International that EJKs remain a serious problem in the country, and killings linked to illegal drug cases peaked in 2023 under the Marcos administration.

“As part of the duties and functions of the House of Representatives, it is prudent to revisit and scrutinize the surrounding circumstances behind the progressing extrajudicial killings in the country for at least a period covering the last twenty-five years up to the present and evaluate existing laws, rules, and regulations that uphold and promote the Constitutional guarantee against any form of human rights violation,” the resolution read. Jaspearl Tan/DMS