by Charissa M. Luci

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II has endorsed the passage of House bills seeking to restore death penalty.

During the hearing of the House Sub-Committee on Judicial Reforms on Tuesday late afternoon, he rallied behind the proposed reimposition of death penalty to deter the commission of crimes.

“In the face of this upsurge of heinous crimes, this government cannot leave our citizens helpless and defenseless. It is high time that the government, through the Legislative branch, exercised its police power, by restoring the supreme penalty of death as deterrence to crimes and thereby send a chilling message to the hardened criminals that this government means business and that barbarity has no place in our society,” Aguirre told the House panel, chaired by Leyte Rep. Vicente “Ching” Veloso.

“The Department of Justice interposes no objection to the passage of the proposed legislative measures restoring the death penalty for being legal, constitutional and a valid exercise of the police power of the State,” he said.

Aguirre said if Congress passes a measure reimposing death penalty, the criminals would think twice before they commit heinous crimes.

“My arguments here is based on personal experience. I would never commit a heinous crime because I would be penalised with death penalty,” he said.

He even noted that drug incidence eliminated for over two years when late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos imposed death penalty.

He said the abolition of death penalty and the reduction of the penalty to reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment under Republic Act No.9346 had lead to the alarming upsurge of heinous crimes such as drug trafficking, murder and rape, among others, in the past years.