There is a big outcry for the re-imposition of the death penalty since the tough talking President was elected on the crusading platform of dealing with criminality, drug related crimes, and corruption. The issue of capital punishment has been there before. What I find unusual now, is the weak resistance or even silence of the Church and other conscientious objectors to this measure, compared in the past. In the first place, the main reason we abandoned capital punishment was the strong opposition and powerful lobby of the religious, humanitarian and pro-life groups, and the public clamor, highlighted in the media, after we had had a couple of judicial executions which elicited public sympathy for the convicts who were sent to the gallows. I find the soft reservation of the pro-life groups, and the seemingly resigned acquiescence of the legislators who were, once, against the death penalty, interestingly curious.
The issue of capital punishment or state sanctioned execution as penal retribution, is without question, highly debatable. My personal view has remained unchanged. I am against the imposition of the death penalty simply because this country, is miserably unprepared and ill equipped in assimilating capital punishment in its criminal justice system.
Before we could even talk of resorting to State execution of criminal offenders, have we ever considered the poor state of affairs of our hapless Law Enforcement Agencies, which are ill trained, poorly equipped, poorly funded, and bereft of expertise, not to mention the horrible corruption among its ranks, to be able to solve crimes or professionally undertake effective crime investigation, to serve the ends of justice?
Have we ever considered that improving the quality of life of our people would lessen crimes and poverty driven offenses? Have our legislators ever considered that poverty is one major cause of crimes, and passing laws providing for he harshest penalties, has not proved to be a perfect deterrent.
In this country, roughly 80 per cent of evidence presented in court, involving cases arising from criminal incidents are witnessed based evidence. Our crime solving and detection methods still belong to the dark ages. The use of forensic science is virtually non-existent or sadly backward. The practice of scientifically examining evidence collected from the crime scene using the advanced technology in criminology is unavailable. And yet we talk of execution, without ever thinking that the person condemned might be wrongly or mistakenly sent to death based on poor, incompetent or flawed police work. We still have poorly trained police investigators whose only skill is to take the affidavit of witnesses without verifying and validating the accounts given, cross referencing them with other testimonies, analyzing and pursuing other possible leads, and ruling out suspects who might wrongly be implicated. In a witness based approach to law enforcement, If there are no witnesses, the crime is likely to remain unsolved, because there are no other independent forensic evidence available. For unsolved crimes there is no cold case department which would follow up and handle them. Or worst if there are no witnesses, police officers are pressured to produce witnesses, simply to present closure.
Before we consider reimposing the death penalty why doesn’t the government, do something to upgrade, modernize, professionalize and build up the capacities of our law enforcers. Why don’t we focus and pursue vigorously effective crime interdiction and intervention programs. Why not talk about reforming the the police organization. If we already have done these, then we might begin debating in a civilized way the imposition of capital punishment.
But then again why talk about bringing back the death penalty when death stalks the nation, as we see the streets littered by dead bodies killed or murdered with impunity, bearing telltale signs of extrajudicial killings perpetrated by unknown, anonymous vigilante ghosts, who act as judge and executioner. I can understand the stand of the President that we are at war against criminality, and I support him. I can even go with him that in this war it is inevitable that the enemies should be neutralized or killed. But in a civilized society there are laws, and even in war there are rules of conduct in warfare,there are rules of engagement, there are laws which insure that everyone is given due process.
So why talk about legislating capital punishment when as things are unfolding now even suspects are being killed? The death penalty is unnecessary.
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