VIOLENCE HAS NO PLACE IN PANDEMIC--POE

The untold miseries of ordinary Filipinos amid the continuing quarantine should not be aggravated by the cruelty and violence of unworthy ground authorities who think they are above the law and can do what they want with impunity.

Sen. Grace Poe made the remark in the wake of the call for justice of the family and loved ones of a curfew violator whom they buried yesterday in Quezon after he was allegedly beaten to death by village watchmen in Laguna.

"How can they afford to torture to death their already helpless constituent amid the hunger, poverty and hopelessness gripping our communities?" Poe lamented.

"The perpetrators of these acts of violence must face the full force and severity of the law," Poe emphasized. Their immediate superiors must also be held accountable under the principle of command responsibility.

Earlier, a curfew violator also died after he was made to do excessive pumping exercises reportedly consisting of 300 squats.

"The perilous plight faced by the defenseless and vulnerable should not be further scorned by the harsh and ignominious blows from supposed 'community protectors,'" Poe said.

"Those who wield such undue use of force and authority must receive the corresponding full weight of the penalties of our laws," the senator added.

"The people have taken more than enough beating from the ravaging pandemic. They don't deserve any more bludgeoning from any arm of the government," Poe said.