Ronald dela Rosa

Sen. Bam: Give clear directive not to kill minors and unarmed suspects

Sen. Bam Aquino called on Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Ronald Dela Rosa to issue a clear and unequivocal directive to the police force not to kill unarmed suspects and to end the indiscriminate killing of minors. 

“A clear, definitive directive from the top na nagsasabing mali pumatay ng suspects na hindi nanlalaban, mahalaga iyon sa kapulisan,” said Sen. Bam after the hearing of the Committee on Public Order on the killing of Kian Delos Santos, who was killed during an anti-drug operation in Caloocan City.

 Police claimed that Kian fired at the policemen, forcing them to fight back. However, CCTV footage from the barangay showed that two policemen were seen dragging Kian to the alley where he was killed.

Another teenager, Carl Angelo Arnaiz, was killed by Caloocan City policemen after he allegedly robbed a taxi driver. However, forensic examinations showed that Arnaiz was handcuffed and was on his knees when he was shot two to three times in the chest.

By punishing policemen involved in the killing of Delos Santos and Arnaiz, Sen. Bam said it will send a strong signal that their unlawful acts will not be tolerated.

 “Kailangan bantayan ang mga kasong ito. The resolution of these two cases should send a clear signal to the rest of the police force that these unlawful acts will not be supported by the Senate or by the police hierarchy,” Sen. Bam stressed.

 “Maraming nakabantay sa mga kasong ito. Nakabantay talaga tayo kung magpapatuloy pa ang mga operations na ganito, kung may mamamatay pa ba. Gusto nating matigil na ang patayan,” added Sen Bam.

During the hearing, Sen. Bam asked Gen. Dela Rosa if there’s a pattern of killing in the PNP with the recent deaths of Delos Santos and Arnaiz.

 The top PNP official vehemently denied the existence of a pattern, saying the police have arrested 120,000 drug suspects alive.

  “The Senate is supportive of the war on drugs and arresting 120,000 criminals involved in drugs is appreciated, but killing of unarmed suspects is still a problem,” said Sen. Bam, adding that a clear directive from the top is a start.

Bam backs PNP’s efforts to clean ranks of scalawags

Sen. Bam Aquino expressed support behind the efforts of the current Philippine National Philippine (PNP) leadership in cleaning its ranks from corrupt policemen, particularly those involved in illegal drugs.

“Napakahalaga talaga ng ating paglilinis sa ating hanay kasi kayo ang frontline at importanteng may tiwala ang tao sa ating frontliners. Kapag nakita ang PNP dapat alam nila mapagkakatiwalaan,” said Sen. Bam during the hearing of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs joint with Justice and Human Rights on the killing of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr.

According to PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa around 1-2 percent of policemen are involved in illegal activities, most especially in the proliferation of prohibited drugs and the campaign to clean the PNP of scalawags within its ranks is on-going

“Progressive ang pagpasok ng information kaya dahan-dahan din ang pagpasok ng information,” said dela Rosa.

Sen. Bam also assured the PNP chief that the Senate will help the PNP’s efforts to get rid of bad eggs in the organization through legislation.

 “Ano ang kailangan niyo mula sa Senado upang malinis niyo ang mga ranggo,” asked Sen. Bam.

 Dela Rosa urged the Senate to restore the PNP’s control over training institutions of policemen.

“Nakikita ko very crucial iyong development ng pagpasok ng pulis lalo na sa kanyang moral foundation,” said dela Rosa.

 “Kami lang ang police organization sa buong mundo na iyong police, hindi PNP naghahawak ng training. Paano namin ma-inculcate ang values at discipline na gusto naming mangyari,” he added.

Dela Rosa also wants the authority to appoint chief of police or provincial director be given to the PNP, eliminate the use of prepaid cellphones and implementation of national ID system.

“Dapat postpaid na lahat para registered kung sino iyong gumagamit ng cellphone dahil iyan ginagamit sa krimen,” said dela Rosa, making it easier for police to identify and arrest criminals.

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