MANILA—The Philippine National Police (PNP) is set to come-out with new guidelines in the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and general community quarantine (GCQ) in the country this week.
This was disclosed in a live radio-TV interview, Sunday, monitored by Sandigan News and Banat Pilipinas News with Police Brigadier General Bernard Banac, PNP spokesperson. He said the new set of guidelines was made through a directive by PNP Chief Archie Francisco Gamboa to guide all PNP personnel in the field who are manning Covid-19 checkpoints and checking people’s compliance of the ECQ and GCQ in support to the guidelines issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging and Infectious Disease.
He is also hopeful that their operation will be more humane and caring and respectful of the rights of citizens. “Kahit wala pa ang bagong panuntunan, pinaalala namin sa aming mga kapulisan at personahe na ginawa natin ito upang ipakita ang pagkalinga at pagmalasakit natin sa ating kapwa. Hindi natin ginawa ito dahil galit tayo, bagkos ginawa natin ito upang maprotektahan ang ating mga kababayan na hindi magkasakit ng Covid-19,” BGen. Banac said.
Lately, the PNP is deluged with complaints of alleged human rights violations and abuses by citizens in the past 48 days of the lockdown. The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) announced that they have to investigate some 200 reported cases of violations mostly committed by law enforcement personnel and persons in authority manning the quarantine checkpoints in the country.
“Minsan lang dahil sa pagod, sa anit, na na-expose ‘yong personahe natin sa stress ay kinapos minsan ng pasyensya. Kaya kailangan talaga ng kooperasyon sa mamamayan at palagiing nasa bahay at pahabain din ang kanilang pasyensya,” BGen. Banac further said.
He continued that after May 15, the deadline set by the president for the ECQ and GCQ, the PNP would continue their usual operations against criminalities and illegal drugs. “Pagkatapos nitong ECQ at GCQ malamang babalik na ang usual operations namin sa kriminalidad at droga ngunit sundin pa rin ang mga panuntunan na galing sa IATF tungkol sa Covid-19.”
