Rodrigo Duterte admits keeping death squad as mayor during his time in office

Rodrigo Duterte, the 79-year-old former president, admitted to maintaining a "death squad" of gangsters while serving as city mayor and as president, with the purpose of killing other criminals. However, he denied authorizing police to kill thousands of suspects as part of a bloody crackdown on illegal drugs. Instead, he claimed that his mandate was to protect the country and its people, and he offered no apologies or excuses for his actions. Throughout the Senate inquiry, he defended the anti-drug campaign.