President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday said the recent killings of teenagers were meant to sabotage his anti-crime efforts.

“Silipin mong (PNP Chief Ronald dela Rosa) mabuti kasi sinasabotahe kayo. Alam mo magbaril iyan, if at all. Pero hindi yung nakabalot. It’s not a job of the police. Sinasadya talaga ‘yan,” Duterte said during the 17th founding anniversary of Digos City.

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(Look deeper into it because you (PNP chief Ronald dela Rosa) are being sabotaged. It’s not the job of the police [to kill kids]. These killings were intentional.)

The President said he and 19-year-old Carl Arnaiz who was killed in Caloocan City by the police were related.

But he did not say how he was related to the victim, who was killed allegedly in a gun battle with Caloocan policemen who were responding to a report of a taxi holdup. His companion, 14-year-old Reynaldo de Guzman was later found dead with his head wrapped in plastic.

“At eto masasabi ko sa inyo –ang diyan sa mga pinatay relative ko. Carl Arnaiz. Relative ko ‘yan. Papayag ako na papatayin ng police? Ako? Papayag ako na papatayin ng police ang kamag-anak ko? he said.

(I have to say this – one of the teenagers killed was related to me: Carl Angelo Arnaiz. We were related. Would I allow police to kill him? Would I allow police to kill my relatives?)

Aside from Arnaiz, 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos was killed by the police in an anti-drug operation also in Caloocan City.

Duterte denied police were carrying out vigilante-style killings of criminals.

“Mag-salvage ng tao (summary execution), we do not do that… Kalokohan iyan (That’s foolish)… Just follow the law. Only when your life is in danger, lumaban (fight) and because you have to place him under the custody, you have to overcome the resistance,” he said.

Duterte said there were people out “to discredit” his administration.

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“May nagluluto diyan to discredit us (There’s a plot to discredit us),” he said.

He ordered dela Rosa to look into the recent killings involving teenagers.

“Silipin mo kasi hindi natin trabaho iyon at hindi ako pumapayag ng ganon (Investigate these killings. These were not the work of police). Kami, we operate within the bounds of the law,” Duterte said./ac

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