DOJ chief smells destab in Jee’s slay
While investigations are ongoing on personalities involved in the kidnap-slay of Korean business executive Jee Ick-joo, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II sees a more sinister angle in the case – destabilization of the Duterte administration.
Speaking at the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs hearing on Jee’s killing yesterday, Aguirre said that a deeper investigation into the case could be worth considering based on his destabilization theory, which he disclosed before the panel.
According to Aguirre, before the case of Jee came out in news reports, he had heard that Senior Police Officer 3 Ricky Sta. Isabel of the Philippine National Police -Anti-Illegal Drugs Group was linked to retired police deputy director general Marcelo Garbo Jr., one of the so-called narco generals named by President Duterte.
Based on Garbo’s alleged links to the Liberal Party, particularly to former interior secretary Manuel Roxas II, Aguirre said that the killing of Jee could be part of a destabilization plot against the administration.
“What I want is for us to go deeper in the investigation of the PNP and NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) because this could possibly have something to do with the destabilization of the government of President Duterte,” Aguirre said in Filipino.
Aguirre explained that those involved in the plot would naturally target the President’s war against drugs since this is the cornerstone of his administration.
“The symbol of the war on drugs is Gen. Bato dela Rosa. So if Gen. Dela Rosa is destroyed, then I’m sure the PNP would be demoralized or destroyed too,” Aguirre said.
“And if you destroy the PNP as the arm of President Duterte in the war against drugs, then you will also destroy the administration of President Duterte,” he added.
While it appears that Dela Rosa is being targeted in the case of Jee, Aguirre said that the real target may be the President.
“So I am saying let us dig deeper. There may be someone higher than the highest ranked person being named in the Jee Ick-joo kidnapping. But there is that possibility, considering the admission borne out today that Sta. Isabel was a protégé of general Garbo,” Aguirre said.
It was not clear how Aguirre linked Sta. Isabel to Garbo but it may have something to do with the policeman’s revelation that he was once with the PNP Intelligence Group, formerly headed by Garbo.
Choi Kyung-jin, widow of Jee, in a statement at the end of yesterday’s hearing, said that justice must be served by showing that the criminals are being penalized and punished for their wrongdoing.
“I’ll be keeping an eye out until justice is completely served and until the end of this case. It is not only the Filipino citizens but also Korean citizens in the Philippines and in Korea who are keeping an eye on the situation. And my husband, who is in heaven, is also waiting for justice to be served,” she said.
OFWs in Korea
Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in South Korea have raised concern that the killing of Jee would result in hate crimes or abuses against Filipinos in Korea.
Members of Katipunan ng mga Samahan ng Migranteng Manggagawa sa Korea (KASAMMAKO) said the case of Jee triggered antagonism among Filipinos working in Korea.
“The crime committed to Jee Ickjoo by policemen under the pretext of war on drugs scarred an enmity in the mind of the South Korean people. The potential ramifications of this incident are negatively inclined, considering the vulnerability to abuse of Filipino migrants here in South Korea,” KASAMMAKO said in a statement.