Senator-elect Panfilo “Ping” Lacson thinks the death penalty should be meted out to those found guilty of plunder, or even the less-severe crime of graft, especially it is a “habit” of the accused.
Lacson stressed that the anti-plunder law should bear down hard on those who habitually steal public funds, even if the amount is less than the P50-million threshold specified by the present law.
The present law, Republic Act (RA) 7080, punishes possession of ill-gotten wealth through a combination or series of overt or criminal acts involving P50 million. If it’s less than P50 million, then the crime is graft.
“Sa akin, hindi importante ang halaga,” said Lacson, a former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief.
“Ang importante kung ito ba ay habitual na ginagawa ng taong gobyerno. Kung recidivist, maski wala pang P50 million dapat talaga parusahan nang mabigat, walang pyansa,” said Lacson, who ran as an independent candidate in the senatorial race.
He added that if the death penalty were to be reimposed in plunder cases, those found guilty of habitual stealing should be subject to this penalty.
“Kung pwede, kung mabalik ang death penalty, masentensyahan siya ng death. Kasi sa hirap ng buhay lalo sa mga kanayunan, ang P50 million, P10 million, P20 million, it doesn’t matter. Kung repetitively ginagawa dapat talaga parusahan nang mabigat,” he said.
