Jamaine Punzalan

Former President Rodrigo Duterte testifies at a Senate hearing on extrajudicial killings and alleged human rights violations in his administration’s war on drugs, Oct. 28, 2024. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File

Article (news)

RODRIGO-DUTERTE

Adrian Ayalin

Vivienne Gulla

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/173708224968320241028-senate hearing-duterte-MT-27.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Former President Rodrigo Duterte testifies at a Senate hearing on extrajudicial killings and alleged human rights violations in his administration’s war on drugs, Oct. 28, 2024. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News/File </span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Human rights advocates and the families of victims of extra-judicial killings filed a disbarment complaint against former President Rodrigo Duterte before the Supreme Court on Friday.</p><p>Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said they cannot disclose the content of their complaint due to the sub-judice rule but she said it cited Duterte&#x27;s alleged violations the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability and his conduct unbecoming a lawyer.</p><p>“Hindi siya karapat-dapat na abogado,” Palabay said.</p><p>Karapatan and the complainants noted that the disbarment complaint against Duterte comes as his daughter Vice President Sara Duterte faces several impeachment complaints. She said the elder Duterte has volunteered to be one of her lawyers in her impeachment woes. </p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2024/12/25/ex-pres-duterte-to-stand-as-lawyer-for-vp-sara-in-impeachment-woes-1719">Ex-Pres. Duterte to stand as lawyer for VP Sara in impeachment woes</a></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8_JqM66bnkY?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span>“At sana kagyat na mapagbigyan, dahil ayaw na naming marinig si Duterte sa impeachment trial if he will just be uttering the same, again, gamit ang kanyang chapa bilang isang abogado at dating prosecutor,” Palabay said.</div><p>The complainants include Atty. Vicente Jaime Topacio, son of National Democratic Front of the Philippines consultants Agaton Topacio and Eugenia Magpantay who were killed in their home in November 2020.</p><p>“Kaya po dinudulog natin ngayon sa pinakamataas na hukuman sa ating mga mahal na hukom na desisyunan at tanggalan ng lisensyang maging abogado si pangulong Duterte, nataon din po dahil sinabi siya ang magtatanggol sa kanyang anak na si VP Sara sa impeachment na darating at naniniwala tayo na dapat desisyunan ng korte ang matagal na pambabastos at pambababoy ng Pangulong Duterte sa ating bayan,” said Topacio.</p><p>Also joining the complainants are other families of victims of extra-judicial killings such as Llore Pasco whose sons Crisanto and Juan Carlos were found dead in October 2017, as well as Rosenda Lemita whose daughter Ana Mariz and son-in law Ariel Evangelista were killed in the so-called Bloody Sunday police raids in Southern Tagalog in 2021.</p><p>“Kaya po ngayon nandito kami para hilingin sa Supreme Court na maghain po kami ng isang para po siya ay matanggalan po ng lisensya bilang abogado dahil hindi po siya karapat-dapat dahil ang isang abogado ang magtatanggol ng karapatan ng bawat Pilipino na mahihirap lalo po kagaya namin na pinaslang na wala pong proseso hanggang sa ngayon,” said Pasco.</p><p>Cultural workers Bonifacio Ilagan, JL Burgos, Kiri Dalena; former Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo; Hustisya Secretary General Ofelia Balleta; and Fr. Manuel Gatchalian and Sr. Elanor Llanes also joined the complainants.</p><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:441px;height:514px;display:block;flex-grow:1" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1880081535212351786&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2025-01-17T02%3A47%3A36.477803%3A5a755c6c-0432-472d-9d70-e2c51efaaedf%26action%3Dedit&amp;sessionId=a9b600f2f32b3f8c800ce8e78dd86d1ecb7d27ef&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" data-tweet-id="1880081535212351786"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script><div><br/></div><div><strong>PANELO DEFENDS DUTERTE </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Duterte’s former spokesperson Salvador Panelo said there was no basis for the disbarment complaint. He noted that no court has convicted Duterte of any crime relating to the alleged EJKs.</p><p>“Mayroon bang pruweba na pumatay siya? …Wala siyang pinapatay,” Panelo said. “He has not committed any crime. Assuming he has committed a crime, you have to prove that beyond reasonable doubt, para maging accountable. That’s the only time you can file a disbarment charge against a member of the bar.”</p><p>“No court has yet to convict the former President of any crime involving the so-called extrajudicial killings. So wala na kaagad basis,” he added.</p><p>But House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro expressed support for the disbarment complaint against Duterte, citing his alleged involvement in EJKs and supposed “misogynistic” remarks.</p><p>“Personally, para sa akin, dapat lang ma-disbar doon sa nangyaring involvement ni Pres. Duterte doon sa EJK noong panahon niya,” Castro said.</p><p>“‘Yung mga ginagawa niyang mga pagmumura na hindi dapat yata ginagawa ng mga abogado. ‘Yung mga ginagawa niyang mga misogynist na statement na hindi dapat ginagawa ‘yun ng isang abogado. Kung ‘yun ang basehan, para sakin, dapat siya ma-disbar,” she said. </p><p>During Duterte’s presidency, an anti-narcotics campaign left more than 6,000 people dead, but rights groups estimate tens of thousands of mostly poor men were killed by officers and vigilantes, often without proof they were linked to drugs.</p><p>The International Criminal Court (ICC) is investigating allegations that the killings were a state-sanctioned &quot;crime against humanity&quot;.</p><p>In October, Duterte told a Senate inquiry that he was<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/10/28/duterte-says-he-takes-full-responsibility-for-bloody-drug-war-1237"> taking &quot;full responsibility&quot;</a> for the campaign.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/war-on-drugs/part6">War on drugs: The unheard stories</a></div><p>“I offer no apologies, no excuses. I did what I had to do and whether you believe it or not I did it for my country,&quot; Duterte said.</p><p>&quot;The war on illegal drugs is not about killing people, this is about the innocent and the defenseless,&quot; he said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/1/13/doj-files-charges-vs-2-pnp-generals-28-others-for-staged-drug-bust-1615">DOJ files charges vs 2 PNP generals, 28 others for ‘staged’ drug bust</a></div><p>The drug war has continued under Duterte&#x27;s successor, Ferdinand Marcos, though he has pushed for more emphasis on prevention and rehabilitation.</p><div><strong>— With a report from Agence France-Presse </strong></div><div><iframe width="1080" height="608" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8ec3j3MHMn0" title="&#x27;Ako ang makulong&#x27;: Duterte says he takes &#x27;full responsibility&#x27; for bloody drug war | ABS CBN News" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div> </div>

<p>The families of alleged extrajudicial killings (EJKs) on Friday sought the disbarment of former President Rodrigo Duterte.</p>

The families of alleged extrajudicial killings (EJKs) on Friday sought the disbarment of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

Ex-President Duterte faces disbarment complaint from rights advocates, EJK victims' kin

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

BINI

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

Nation

Ex-President Duterte faces disbarment complaint from rights advocates, EJK victims' kin

Adrian Ayalin,

Vivienne Gulla,

ABS-CBN News

Published January 17, 2025 10:55 AM PHT

|

Updated January 17, 2025 03:07 PM PHT

Read More:

EJK

Rodrigo Duterte

disbarment

Supreme Court

war on drugs

ABSNews

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

Sign Up

I have read and agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.