Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILABULLETIN)

After eight marathon hearings, the House quad-committee (quad-comm) is ready to produce a partial committee report on its findings on the alleged extrajudicial killings during the previous Duterte administration. 

Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, overall chairman of the quad-comm, said they are now in the process of finishing the partial committee report. 

Such report can be used by the concerned agencies like the Department of Justice (DOJ), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and the Office of the Ombudsman in pursuing cases against personalities, since congressional panels have quasi-judicial function. 

While the quad-comm has been looking into various other issues like Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), it's with the EJK issue that the mega-panel has gathered enough affidavits and testimonies to come up with a report on, even if it's "partial". 

“So yung partial committee report [is] the report na gagawin namin na sa aming palagay ay natalakay na ng husto at sufficient na yung mga data and evidence para mailagay na namin sa committee report para umaksyon na yung ibang ahensya ng gobyerno," Barbers explained. 

(So the partial committee report is the report that we will produce based on what we think has been discussed thoroughly, with sufficient data and evidence, so that we can place it in the committee report and have other government agencies act on it.) 

"Kung DOJ yan o Office of the Ombudsman yan, isa-submit na namin ang mga reports na yan nang sa ganon ay mag-umpisa na yung preliminary investigation nila," added the veteran solon from Mindanao. 

(Whether it's the DOJ of the Office of the Ombudsman, we will now submit these reports so that they can launch their preliminary investigations.) 

Barbers mentioned two things that the partial report could contain. 

“Halimbawa, yung tatlong Chinese drug lords na napatay sa loob ng [Davao Penal Colony). Yung nagbigay na testimonya ng dalawang suspect, umamin, meron silang mga nabanggit doon. Maaring yan ang laman ng aming report. 

(For example, the three Chinese drug lords who were killed inside the Davao Penal Colony. Two suspects have given their testimonies and admitted to it, they mentioned something there. That could be part of our report.) 

"Yung isa naman, etong kay Col. [Royina] Garma na meron din siyang mga nabanggit at maaring maisama na rin namin yan sa partial committee report," the quad-comm lead chairman said. 

(The other one, about Col. Garma, she also mentioned something that could be included in the partial committee report.) 

In a quad-comm hearing last Oct. 11, Garma accused former president Rodrigo Duterte of spearheading a nationwide, cash reward-driven system during his administration's war on drugs, similar to what allegedly took place in Davao City.   

Garma bared that he recommended to Duterte retired colonel and now resigned National Police Commission (Napolcom) commissioner Edilberto Leonardo as the implementer of this alleged "Davao model".  

Like Garma, Leonardo is also a resource person in the ongoing quad-comm hearings.  

Barbers said the mega-panel will continue its inquiry even after the release of the partial committee report.