Former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ronald “Bato (Rock)” dela Rosa is known for heading President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody drug war. Back when he was still in charge of it, he rarely seemed contrite about leading the campaign, but now that he’s running for senator in this year’s mid-term elections, it appears that things have changed.

Dela Rosa yesterday visited the residence of Archbishop Rolando Tria Tirona of the Archdiocese of Caceres in Naga City to seek forgiveness for his role in the deaths of suspects and cops during the drug war.

Dela Rosa, who visited the bishop after attending an event at the Naga College Foundation, said he spoke with Tirona privately, The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.

Dela Rosa told reporters in Filipino: “I asked for forgiveness from the bishop for those who have died in the drug war back when I was the PNP chief. Not just for the drug suspects but I also asked for forgiveness for the cops who died during the campaign.”

But dela Rosa maintained that despite seeking forgiveness, he believes that all the anti-drug operations he led were perfectly legal, Manila Bulletin reported.

And the bishop actually forgave dela Rosa, or at least that’s what the former PNP chief said, according to CNN Philippines. Dela Rosa said that the priest hugged him and gave him a “special something” that would “protect” dela Rosa wherever he is.

The self-described devout Catholic said: “There’s probably no bishop or priest who will say that they will not forgive you. He forgave me because he’s the representative of God. And with God, when you seek his forgiveness, if you’re sincere when you ask for it, he might probably forgive you.”

If you’re still doubtful about dela Rosa’s faith, here’s what he told reporters in yesterday about how he felt every time he had to kill someone back when he was still in the PNP.

“They say, ‘Bato is a killer,’ but every time I kill someone, I go to church and cry. I ask the Lord for forgiveness ‘Lord please forgive me for what I did, it was all in the line of duty, but they still deserve to live even if they are evil,'” he said.

So magnanimous of him.

The PNP estimates that as of November, 5,050 drug suspects have died in anti-drug operations. The PNP said many of those who died were killed because they fought back, though that’s not always the case.

However, the New York-based Human Rights Watch has questioned the validity of the PNP’s numbers and has accused them of “manipulating” the data to make it appear that the number of those killed is lower than the real statistics.

At present, the International Criminal Court is investigating Duterte for allegedly committing crimes against humanity in connection with his drug war.

Dela Rosa recently became the subject of much controversy when netizens called for a boycott of a biopic based on his life, starring Duterte supporter Robin Padilla.

This article, Former PH police chief seeks bishop’s forgiveness for drug war deaths, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company. Want more Coconuts? Sign up for our newsletters!