Senator Leila de Lima said her probe into the surge of killings since Duterte took office on June 30 had been derailed after his allies voted to remove her as head of the Senate justice committee. De Lima, a former justice secretary and human rights chief, had launched the Senate probe. On Sunday Duterte asked for a six-month extension for his war on drugs, saying there were too many people involved in the narcotics trade. - Street killings - =================== “I did not realise how severe and how serious the drug menace was in this republic until I became president,” Duterte, 71, told reporters late Sunday in Davao. Roman Catholic church bishops warned Monday that giving Duterte an extension would result in more summary killings.

Source: Sunday Times September 19, 2016 14:03 UTC