THE Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) has called for “understanding” from the influential Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on the need to re-impose the death penalty, arguing that it is the best deterrent to heinous crimes. In a letter to CBCP president and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, VACC chairman Dante Jimenez warned that without the death penalty, crime would continue unabated and the country would remain crime-ridden. Without specifically naming the CBCP, Jimenez said those against the death penalty offered no new arguments to support their stand. He said the argument that the death penalty is anti-poor is not valid, considering that 70 percent of the Filipino population is poor. “Legal tactics, sensationalizing issues and pressure by the Catholic Church derailed the Death Penalty Law implementation.

Source: Manila Times March 13, 2017 16:30 UTC