DAVAO City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte said that the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. is “very lenient” to criminals following the latest holdup incident in the city.
“We are doing everything that we can to secure Davao City pero if yung PNP Chief magsasalita na ang droga ay pampagising, what can you expect kung paano mag-behave ang mga criminals right now,” he said during the Basta Dabawenyo Podcast on Sunday, March 2, 2025.
(We are doing everything that we can to secure Davao City, but if the PNP chief [P/Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil] says that drugs are making people awake, what can you expect in how the criminals will behave right now?)
Duterte pointed to the performance of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief and the current administration, suggesting that many people are being encouraged to engage in criminal activities
The mayor added that the public is dissatisfied with the peace and order situation in the Philippines, highlighting that there are multiple documented cases of people using drugs online and committing drug-related crimes.
He also expressed concern over the statement made by Marbil in November during an interview on the Bilyonaryo News Channel, where Marbil said that not all drug users are addicts; some are forced to use drugs to stay awake, especially during long working hours.
He added that there is a possibility that the arrested suspect in a robbery-holdup recently who admitted to be from Leyte was brought to Davao City for a job, whether legal or illegal and that the heist was possibly planned, as it is easy to pay people to commit crimes for a promise of a reward, especially in these difficult times.
To recall, a robbery-holdup occurred in broad daylight at a jewelry store on Ilustre Street, Poblacion District, on February 26, 2025. The suspects carted away jewelry valued between P40 million and P100 million. A few hours later, the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) arrested one of the suspects, named Johnny, who is from Leyte.
However, many netizens claimed that the heist was staged, but the DCPO debunked these claims. DCPO Acting City Director Police Colonel Hansel Marantan also dismissed the speculation that the robbery was part of a Simulation Exercise (Simex), a drill designed to test emergency preparedness. He revealed that authorities suspect a larger, organized group orchestrated the crime.
Meanwhile, the Police Regional Office-Davao Region (PRO-Davao) has offered a reward of around P100,000 for any information that will lead to the arrest of the remaining suspects. RGP
