INTERIOR Secretary Eduardo Año on Tuesday came to the defense of the Makati City policeman who figured in a scuffle with a Spanish inside the posh Dasmariñas Village on Sunday night, a video of which has gone viral on social media platforms.
“He did everything by the book. He did his job well at ipaglalaban ko ‘yan, kahit na mababang ranggo ng ating pulis, basta tama ‘yan (He did his job well and I’ll defend him, even if he is a low ranking policeman, if he is right),” Año said.
Senior Master Sergeant Roland Von Madrona, and a barangay official were making their regular round of the village, a mandate under the village’s quarantine regulations, when they saw house help Cherilyn Escalate watering outdoor plants without a face mask, a violation of the rules. She was advised to wear a mask. In the video, it was seen that she went inside the house after talking with Madrona and the barangay leader.
Moments later, her employers Spanish Javier Parra Salvador and his Filipino wife Abegail Salvador came out and confronted the policeman. Salvador seemed smelled of alcohol and seemed intoxicated and was not wearing any shirt. He and his wife were also not wearing any face mask.
Madrona threatened to arrest the foreigner after the latter cursed at him. When Salvador refused to stop with his tirades, the cop went inside the compound, pinned the foreigner to the ground to arrest him but stopped when the wife said her husband has a back injury.
“They were on the street. It is already during the arrest that they went inside the backyard or in front of the house and that’s allowed by law. It’s what you call hot pursuit,” Año said, adding: “We are supporting him, the policeman actually did the right thing.”
As the concurrent chairman of the National Police Commission, Año has already dismissed from service about 2,000 policemen for various offenses because he dislikes policemen who abuse their powers, hurt people and engage in illegal activities.
Año wants all possible charges filed against the foreigner, whom he called an “irresponsible person,” including verbal assault, unjust vexation, resisting arrest, violation of city ordinance for not wearing mask outside residence, and violation of RA 11332, the law that provides policies and prescribes procedures on surveillance and response to notifiable diseases, epidemics and health concern.
PNP Chief Archie Gamboa defended Madrona’s use of force against Salvador as he pointed out the police officer who was trying to apprehend him was at a disadvantage because the Spanish was physically bigger than him.
“Nakita ‘niyo naman siguro, your honors, kung gaano kalaki ‘yung foreigner compared sa policeman (Your honors, you probably saw how big the foreigner was compared to the policeman). So really, it (the use of force) will depend (on the situation),” Gamboa told lawmakers after participating in a virtual technical working group (TWG) meeting of the House Defeat COVID-19 committee’s peace and order cluster.
The PNP chief was replying to a reporter’s question during the question and answer part of the TWG hearing on the government’s COVID-19 responses.
“Pero nakita ‘niyo naman he was able to subdue the suspect pero medyo nahirapan siya (You saw he was able to subdue the suspect although he struggled a bit). So based on the video, it is very clear that enough force was applied,” Gamboa said.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente reminded foreigners to obey special regulations under the enhanced community quarantine and warned them they could be deported for violation of Philippine laws.
“The ECQ rules are not exclusive to Filipinos. The ECQ guidelines were placed to promote public health and safety among members of society. That means everyone, including foreign nationals. Aliens who disregard the law may face deportation,” Morente said.
He cited section 6 of the Bayanihan We Heal As One Act which states that foreigners who violate the law will be penalized and deported.
“Aliens who blatantly disregard our laws, especially during this critical period, may not only face criminal charges but also immigration deportation cases as well. If deported, alien offenders will be perpetually barred from returning to the country,” the BI chief said.
PROPER IMPLEMENTATION
The DILG has received over 1,000 complaints against barangay chairmen throughout the country for failure to properly implement ECQ regulations.
DILG undersecretary for barangay operations Martin Diño said the complaints against erring barangay officials from Luzon and Visayas and Mindanao were forwarded to his office by complaint centers from the municipal level.
Diño said they have been received an average of around 30 complaints daily against barangay officials. “That’s what we’re monitoring,” he said, adding the DILG is looking into the complaints lodged against these barangay officials.
Diño did not say how many barangay officials are subject of the more than 1,000 complaints, which includes among others, denial of entry to frontliners and persons that are given exemptions under the quarantine protocols.
“They know the SOP (standard operating procedure). They have to follow the policy. If the people have legitimate IDs (to prove they are exempted), they should be allowed to pass,” he said.
Diño said 50 barangay chairmen from Metro Manila have been already issued show-cause orders. Those who fail to properly explain their violations will be charged criminally and administratively. — With Wendell Vigilia
