LACK OF CEDULA DOESNT MEAN
DISLOYALTY TO STATE -- PIMENTEL

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Nene Q. Pimentel, Jr. (PDP-Laban) today denounced the reported harassment and intimidation of residents in Nueva Ecija by army troops for failure to present their cedula or community tax certificate (CTC).

Pimentel said soldiers under the command of Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, chief of the Armys 7th Infantry Division, are abusing their authority by maltreating residents who could not show their cedula and instantly suspecting that they are subversives or members of the underground communist movement.

The possession of the community tax certificate is no proof on the loyalty to the state. It is not even required by law unless it is needed for some transactions, he said.

Neither the military nor any person for that matter can compel people to purchase CTCs unless they are required for documentary purposes.