By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Stung by Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s remark that House members were “unprincipled” and “opportunistic”, Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop on Sunday (18 Aug 2024) fired back at the erstwhile top cop during the Duterte administration’s “bloody” war on illegal drugs and called the latter “the real opportunist.”
In a statement, Acop challenged dela Rosa to identify the House members he accused of being “unprincipled” and “opportunistic.”
“If anyone is the real opportunist, it’s Sen. dela Rosa, who shamelessly used his ties with the former President to rise from PNP (Philippine National Police) chief to a senator, leading a bloody drug war that targeted the powerless while shielding the powerful,” the Antipolo lawmaker fumed.
Dela Rosa earlier said that House members were “unprincipled” and “opportunistic” as they criticized former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s war on drugs.
He claimed that the House members used to be supportive of it.
Acop co-chairs the House Quad Committee that is investigating the possible link of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) to the illegal drug trade, extrajudicial killings involving drugs, and other crimes.
During its first joint committee hearing on Friday (16 August 2024) in Bacolor, Pampanga, former Customs intelligence officer Jimmy Guban testified that Davao Rep. Paolo Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte’s husband Mans Carpio, and the former President’s then-economic adviser Michael Yang allegedly smuggled in P11 billion worth of shabu in 2018.
“Don’t act like a K9 of the previous administration. Prioritize the country’s interests and the general welfare of the people,” Acop chided Dela Rosa.
He also called Dela Rosa a “loyal lapdog” of Duterte since the senator focused on “his career” rather than “justice.”
“Sen. Dela Rosa’s loyalty lies not with the truth, but with protecting his interests and those of his political benefactors,” Acop said.
He criticized dela Rosa for failing to expose such information in the Senate’s drug hearing.
“Sen. dela Rosa’s so-called investigations were a farce. Despite his position, he conveniently ignored the involvement of individuals close to the former President. Who was he protecting?” Acop noted.
He emphasized that the focus of the House Quad Committee is to find out the truth and “will not be deterred by threats or accusations.”
“We are simply doing our duty. There’s no need to fear the Quad committee unless there’s something to hide. It’s becoming too obvious that Sen. Dela Rosa is scared,” Acop stressed.
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