Cayetano debunks de Lima’s ‘lies’ about his human rights record

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March 14, 2025

4–6 minutes

“You’re making me out to be a monster, Ma’am. Hindi naman totoo.”

This was Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s response on Thursday to former Senator Leila de Lima’s recent accusation that he disregarded human rights as part of the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

In a Facebook livestream, Cayetano detailed several initiatives he supported during Duterte’s administration to uphold the human rights of Filipinos, including efforts to rehabilitate confirmed drug addicts in Taguig.

He said this contradicts de Lima’s narrative that he supports the killing of drug users.

“Ang addict po ay biktima – uulit-ulitin ko po y’un. Tingnan niyo lahat ng statements ko. Never kong sinabing patayin ang addict kasi ang addict ay biktima,” Cayetano asserted.

“Dapat sila ay gamutin. Dapat sila ay bigyan ng oras. At kami po ay may mga programa sa rehabilitation. Nandito po ang main rehabilitation sa Taguig,” he added.

Taguig is home to the Department of Health’s largest rehabilitation facility in Bicutan, with a 550-person capacity.

“Dinala ko po y’ung mga reporters dito. Hindi ka sumama, Ma’am. Senador ka naman, pwede mo tingnan y’ung rehab,” he said.

In a September 2021 media interview with iFM Cebu, Cayetano emphasized that any continuation of the anti-drug campaign must focus on both spiritual transformation and the medical aspect of addiction.

“Kailangan may medical approach ka, kasi nga nabiktima ‘yang mga ‘yan. Naging addict ‘yan not because they wanted to, but they were curious and the drugs took over their minds and hearts. So dapat may medical intervention din,” he explained.

He reiterated this stance in various events, including his annual visits to inmates at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) facility in Taguig.

“Malaking porsyento ang nasa kulungan ay may kinalaman sa drugs. Nahihirapan kasi sila mag-rehab sa addiction sa drugs. It’s the one thing that I’m looking at — how to have an effective drug rehabilitation program sa loob ng jails,” he told detainees at Taguig City Jail and Metro Manila District Jail on November 10, 2023.

Cayetano also cited his efforts to protect the rights of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) during Duterte’s term.

Among these was launching an exclusive online portal for OFWs to shield them from syndicates charging exorbitant fees for passport processing.

In his livestream on Thursday, Cayetano chided de Lima for not doing enough during her time as Justice Secretary.

“Hindi niyo po binanggit na n’ung panahon po n’yo bilang Justice Secretary ay bukod sa napakahirap kumuha ng passport, never n’yo tinanggal ang sindikato doon sa passport,” he said.

He also said OFWs had a difficult time during de Lima’s time, prompting him, as Foreign Affairs Secretary under Duterte, to increase the legal assistance fund for OFWs facing cases abroad to P1.3 billion.

“Minsan sa korte na magkakaroon ng abogado. Inayos po natin ‘yan dahil ang bawat OFW tinatawag nating hero pero wala naman palang legal assistance fund na sapat,” he said.

“So let me know how you can say na wala kaming pakialam sa human rights when everything we did was for people’s human rights,” he said, addressing de Lima directly.

Cayetano urged fact-checking groups to scrutinize de Lima’s statements.

“I-fact-check n’yo na lahat ng sinabi ni Senator de Lima kasi ang daming mali sa sinabi niya,” he said.

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