'Superbody' to be created for probe of journalists killings

Justice Secretary Leila De Lima has promised to create a "superbody" that would investigate the killings of journalists in the country, the National Press Club of the Philippines (NPC) said Friday. In a statement, NPC president Jerry Yap said De Lima told them that a draft executive order creating the superbody is already being reviewed by their department. “It (the superbody) will serve as an umbrella body headed by the Department of Justice (DOJ). This body will have representatives from media also as members and shall oversee the functions of existing task forces," De Lima reportedly told Yap and other NPC officers.
Yap, for his part, told De Lima in a letter that she has to create a body “with more teeth and more muscle" if she really wants to put an end to the media killings. He noted, however, that the NPC has full confidence in De Lima, who he said was a "staunch human rights advocate" and an "alter ego" of President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III. "We know you believe in the indispensable importance and tremendous impact of the liberty of the press to bring about good governance. We know you sense clear and present danger to reporters. We know you hate to see a country without reporters," the NPC president said. Meanwhile, the DOJ chief also reportedly "welcomed" the proposal of the NPC to conduct a national summit on media killings soon. “I agree on that (summit) and that we must do. We can do it as soon as the body is created so that we can hear from newsmen themselves and discuss how the body should move," she reportedly said. - Kimberly Jane T. Tan/RJAB Jr./JV, GMANews.TV