President Rodrigo Roa Duterte fires a few rounds from a sniper rifle as he leads the ceremonial shoot during the opening ceremony of the National Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Challenge at the Team Davao Inc. Pistol and Rifle Range in Ma-a, Davao City on March 1, 2018. Also in the photo is Philippine National Police Director General Ronald dela Rosa. JOEY DALUMPINES/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTOLorenzana on Jan. 15 notified UP President Danilo Concepcion that the agreement, executed on June 30, 1989, was unilaterally terminated.
Malacañang on Tuesday said President Rodrigo Duterte was definitely in support of the Department of National Defense’s (DND) move to unilaterally repeal its 1989 agreement with the University of the Philippines (UP), which will allow state forces to freely enter the university’s campuses.
“Si (Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana) po is an alter ego of the president. Of course, the president supports the decision of Secretary Lorenzana,” Palace spokesman Harry Roque said in a virtual presser.
The UP-DND Accord bans the police and military from conducting operations within UP campuses without prior notification to UP officials.
Lorenzana on Jan. 15 notified UP President Danilo Concepcion that the agreement, executed on June 30, 1989, was unilaterally terminated.
In a tweet, UP professor and journalist Danilo Arao said that the UP-DND Accord was signed after a staffer of UP’s official publication, the Philippine Collegian, was tortured and forced to confess to the killing of an American soldier.NDe protections and courtesies afforded by the agreement,” he said.
“May I urge you, therefore, to reconsider and revoke your abrogation, and request further that we meet to discuss your concerns in the shared spirit of peace, justice and the pursuit of excellence,” he added. John Ezekiel J. Hirro