De Lima: 'Davao Model' resembles Davao Death Squad's reward system
MANILA, Philippines — The "Davao Model," which allegedly involves rewarding police officers with cash for each drug suspect killed, mirrors the reward system of the notorious Davao Death Squad (DDS), former Senator Leila de Lima said on Tuesday, October 22.
Speaking as a resource person at the House quadcom’s ninth hearing on extrajudicial killings during the drug war, De Lima presented past findings showing that the practice of rewarding individuals for arbitrary killings dates back to former President Rodrigo Duterte's first term as Davao City mayor.
The "Davao Model" was first referenced by retired police chief Royina Garma in her sworn statement, where she revealed that Duterte had asked her to find a police officer or operative who could replicate the model on a national scale.
She confirmed with lawmakers that cash rewards ranged from P20,000 to as much as P1 million per drug suspect killed.
The DDS reward system, on the other hand, was reported to have paid police officers, assassins and civilian informants up to P15,000 in total.
These findings come from the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), part of which De Lima uncovered during her tenure as the agency's chairperson from 2008 to 2010.
The former senator later served as justice secretary under the Aquino III administration, where she continued the investigation into the DDS reward system.
Reward breakdown
According to De Lima's presentation, from 1988 to 2000 in Davao City, two groups received rewards for killing named suspects: the police handlers and the assassins.
Assassins were paid two-thirds of the total reward, receiving P10,000 of the P15,000 allocated per kill, while police handlers received P5,000.
Duterte served as Davao City's vice mayor from 1986 to 1987. He was then elected mayor in 1988, holding the position until 1998. During the period covered by the CHR's findings, Duterte was a congressman representing Davao City's first district.
De Lima said that the assassins were initially composed of "rebel returnees," while the handlers were active police officers. Their safehouse was stationed at the National Police Commission’s compound in Barangay San Pedro, Davao, she added.
“After the summary execution of targeted victims, the DDS members regrouped at their safehouse and divided the reward,” she added.
Upgraded system. The reward system, however, expanded its operations to include “abanteros” or civilian informants when Duterte returned as Davao City mayor in 2001, according to CHR findings.
“Upon the return of [Duterte] as mayor in 2001, the DDS was upgraded into the heinous crimes investigations section or HCIS located in the Almendras Gym Compound in Davao City,” De Lima said.
The HCIS that De Lima mentioned was an official unit of the Davao City Police Office, she added.
By this time, Duterte had served another three terms as mayor until 2010, then worked one term as vice mayor, before being re-elected mayor in 2013.
So from 2001 to 2016, the CHR discovered that the team was paid a total of P13,000 to P15,000 for each victim killed. This was the breakdown:
- Police handler: P3,000 to P5,000
- Assassin: P7,000 to P8,000
- Informant: P500 to P1,000
Functions. De Lima explained that the police handlers served as supervisors for three civilian informants, responsible for issuing orders and ensuring the team's protection.
She added that the members were assigned to either office support or fieldwork and were given “an average of three targets each month.”
Fund source. The former senator said that the CHR's investigation revealed that DDS members occasionally received incentives directly from Duterte, who is suspected of being the "superman" referred to by members of the vigilante group.
“Duterte sometimes personally gave out the kill orders and the reward money directly to the assassins themselves,” she said.
De Lima also presented the affidavit of SPO3 Arturo Lascañas, self-confessed DDS chief, which was submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In his affidavit, Lascañas stated that DDS members were paid between P10,000 and P20,000 from 1988 to 1998 as part of the “Anti-Crime Task Force of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.” Special project killings, De Lima said, were awarded from P100,000 to P1 million.
By combining the CHR findings with Lascañas’ statement, the former senator told lawmakers that the logistics and finances of the DDS were funded by Davao City's peace and order intelligence funds during Duterte's tenure as mayor.
“This included weekly gas allowances, monthly cash allowances, and Christmas cash gifts,” she added.
Return to ICC
De Lima ended her presentation by urging the Marcos administration to restore the Philippines' membership in the ICC, citing Republic Act 9851, also known as the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.
Section 17. In the interest of justice, the relevant Philippine authorities may dispense with the investigation or prosecution of a crime punishable under this Act if another court or international tribunal is already conducting the investigation or undertaking the prosecution of such crime.
“We must rejoin the community of nations who have recognized the need for an international body of nations who have recognized to go after the perpetrators of the most terrible crimes against humanity,” De Lima said.
The ICC has been investigating the Duterte administration's war on drugs since 2018. It acknowledges data from human rights groups indicating that the death toll has reached 30,000, in stark contrast to official records, which cite only 6,000.
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