LP senators stand pat vs death penalty as House set to pass bill on 3rd reading

The LP senators said the House vote on House Bill 4727 or the bill seeking death penalty for drug-related crimes, will be a “mere formality.” (Photo: Liberal Party of the Philippines/ Facebook)

MANILA –Senators belonging to the Liberal Party (LP) on Tuesday said they are standing pat on their opposition against death penalty despite pressure from the House of Representative (HOR) which is set to pass their version of the bill on third and final reading the same day.

“Pressure, intimidation, or enticement will not sway the LP members from casting a vote based on their conscience and conviction,” LP senators said in a joint statement.

The LP senators said the House vote on House Bill 4727 or the bill seeking death penalty for drug-related crimes, will be a “mere formality.”

Although the LP at the HOR has been a cooperative bloc, LP lawmakers said that it should also play the role of “reasonable fiscalizers” when the situation and our principles demand it.

They further said that they have tried to work within the majority bloc to come up with bills that are reasoned and thoroughly deliberated, and that work for the interest of the Filipino people.

“The Liberal Party reiterates that it is opposed to the death penalty because it is ineffective, it further victimizes the poor, it violates international law, and our criminal justice system is flawed,” the statement further read.

They stressed that the solution to crime is ensuring certainty of punishment by a systematic, inter-branch push to reform the Philippine justice system.