PRIVILEGE SPEECH
ABUSE OF LAW ENFORCERS

Good afternoon Mr. President and my dear colleagues. "No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, and property without due process of law". Ito po ang ginagarantiya ng ating Constitution. At kung titingnan po natin, ang sabi ay "no person" shall be deprived. Hindi no rich person, hindi no well-connected person, hindi rin no person in power or authority. It simply says "no person." Pero sa mga nakikita at naririnig ko sa mga lumalapit sa akin, ang mga mamamayan nating mahihirap at walang estado o koneksyon ang kadalasang di nabibigyan ng proteksyon na pinangako ng ating saligang batas.

Through the years, I have received so many complaints about abusive law enforcers and people being wrongfully accused of crimes just because they can't defend themselves and just because they are poor.

Kamakailan lang sa aking programa, may PWD na pinuntahan sa kaniyang bahay ng mga kapulisan na di man lang nakauniporme. Inakusahan siya na nagsnatch ng cellphone. Hinalughog ng pulis ang bahay nila at nang may nakitang mumurahing cellphone yun ang sinabing nakaw na cellphone. Ni wala man lang search warrant ang pulis At dahil dito inimbitahan ang PWD sa presinto. Invitation. Ito ang magic word na ginagamit ng mga pulis para sa mga mahihirap nating kababayan upang makaladkad nila sa presinto ng walang warrant of arrest. At pagdating sa presinto, anong nangyari sa PWD? Pinag-antay ang PWD at nang walang dumating na complainant, pinauwi siya.

Ano yun? Pasensya na lang? Nayurakan na ang kaniyang pagkatao. Nalabag na ang kaniyang mga karapatan. Pero ano naman ang magagawa nila? Wala silang abogado. Wala silang kakilala. Talaga nga naman... Kapag mayaman proseso pero kapag mahirap abuso.

Nakita din natin ang mga mapang-abuso na mga law enforcers noong panahon na nauso ang tanim bala o laglag bala. Mga pulis at airport security officials na nagnanais kumikil ng pera sa mga turista at pasahero. May isang kaso pa nga akong naalala na limang araw nanatili ang kawawang turista na si Lane Michael White dahil sa bala na itinago daw sa kaniyang maleta. At syempre, andiyan din ang mga nabiktima ng tokhang. Mga naakusahan at nataniman ng droga kahit inosente. Mga lumang tugtogin pero paulit ulit pa din.

Lilinawin ko lang at pasingtabi sa idolo ko na Senator Bato Dela Rosa. Hindi ko po nilalahat ang mga kapulisan. Sa totoo lang madami na din akong pinarangalan na mga pulis dahil sa katapatan nila sa kanilang serbisyo. Pero nais ko lamang po maliwanagan kung saan nga ba ang problema sa mga operasyon ng ating mga law enforcers.

Sa totoo lang si Senator Dela Rosa pa ang nag-expose sa mga Ninja cops noong siya ay PNP chief pa. Ano ba ang Ninja Cops? This is a term coined to refer to uniformed personnel or government agents involved in illicit drugs trade by under reporting drugs seized from anti-drug busts and then selling the rest through their own network of dealers. Tapos hati hati na sila sa kikitain. Senator Bato exposed that 300 of his officers are conspirators in the drug business.

Just recently, our attention was called to Ninja cops still existing within the ranks of PDEA, and not just lowly officers but a high official in PDEA. Enrique Lucero, who heads the PDEA Southern District Office, as well as anti-narcotics agents Anthony Vic Alabastro and Jaireh Llaguno were apprehended during a sting operation that yielded shabu valued at P9.18 million. They were even conducting their illegal operations in the building provided to them by the City of Taguig.

I congratulate the Southern Police District director Brig. Gen. Kirby John Kraft who headed the drug bust operation. The suspects are now under the custody of NCRPO for proper disposition pending the filing of appropriate charges in Taguig City Prosecutor's Office. With hopes that there are more of these officials who have the will power to clean up their ranks, maybe we can help them by checking if there is something we can improve in our laws so that they could be practical and effective when it comes to law enforcement. Or maybe there are still gaps in the law that could be reinforced by new legislation.

My number one concern today is the prevention of people, particularly the weak and the poor, being wrongly accused of crimes. Because it is far better that ten guilty men go free than one innocent man be wrongfully convicted. Based on the Historical data of the Public Attorney's Office, since 2008, they've had 218,883 acquittals. Just this year, by June 30, 2022 they've had 13,164 acquittals. That's an average of 2,194 per month. Ibig sabihin po nito 2,194 na inosenteng tao ang inakusahan at nilitis kahit wala silang kasalanan. Masyado po malaki ang numero na ito. Siguro panahon na po para tingnan kung kailangan na itaas ang quantum of evidence na kailangan para masampahan ng kasong criminal. Sa ngayon po ay simpleng probable cause lang. Kaya bigay hilig ang mga piskal na magsampa ng kaso kaliwa't kanan.

Another concern is the planting of evidence to wrongfully accuse a person. There are laws already in place punishing the planting of evidence but it only covers the planting of firearms and ammunitions under the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act and of drugs under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. These laws provided for such because these became a source of kickback because a lot of the accused in these cases are well-off. But how about the planting of other types of evidence? Should these not be punished as well? My office is looking through cases involving planted evidence that do not involve drugs and firearms, and we will prepare a bill that would hold those involved liable.

At sinusuportahan ko din po ang mga panukala ng mga kasamahan ko dito na sina Senators Dela Rosa, Gatchalian, at Revilla. They already filed bills on the Law Enforcement Body-worn Camera Act. Malaking tulong ito upang masiguro ang pagsunod sa tamang proseso sa mga operasyon ng mga kapulisan. Tulad sa aking programa na maraming mata na nakatingin, kapag may nakatutok na camera mapipilitan sumunod sa proseso ang mga pulis.

And, if it is still possible to include in the bill, I propose that the accused and his family or companion should be given the right to take their own videos of the arresting process and the search of their premises. I have seen many instances where the law enforcers who would stop the accused or his family from taking a video of what is happening to cover up their abuse. If they are not doing anything wrong, they should never be afraid of being recorded.

Another bill filed by Senator Dela Rosa is Senate Bill No. 437 or the CCTV Act of 2022. The bill sought the installation of CCTVs in business establishments to aid Philippine National Police in deterring crimes. We have seen several crimes solved because of CCTVs. But I will submit a supporting bill that would also require the installation of CCTV cameras in police precincts and detention facilities. I seek the guidance of Senator Dela Rosa regarding this.

A lot of human rights violations happen in the police precincts upon arrest or invitation of suspects or persons of interest. Mapipigilan ng CCTV sa mga presinto at detention facilities ang pambubugbog ng mga naaaresto. Matitigil din ang pagpasok ng mga unauthorized individuals sa presinto para mambugbog ng detainees. na minsan ay bumubugbog sa mga detained individuals. Mapipigilan din ang pagpasok ng mga pinagbabawal na droga sa mga detention center. At isa pa ay mababantayan ang mga detained individuals na minsan ay nakakalusot at nakakatakas dahil padrino nila ang officer in charge sa presinto.

Next budget deliberations, I will focus on the budget of the PNP to ensure that they are equipped with the right budget to properly enforce the law. They should have functioning body-cams that do not obscure or hamper their movement during the operations. The police headquarters should have cctvs. Another report that has reached me is that they do not have enough funds to conduct proper buy-bust operations due to lack of UV detection powder that will mark not only the money but also the subject.

Isa pang napansin ko na kailangang ayusin ay ang mga abusadong pulis na nababalitaan ko ay pabata ng pabata. Mga bagito pa. Hindi sila sumusunod sa proseso. Hindi nila ginagalang ang karapatan ng mga akusado na kung tutuusin ay INNOCENT until proven guilty. We need to instill respect for due process. Kailangan naiintindihan ng mga kapulisan ang halaga ng mga proseso na ginagawa nila. And if they have a deep understanding of the procedure, they will be more consistent in its application.

Dapat alam nila kung para saan ba ang pagsabi at pagpapaliwanag ng Miranda Rights ng isang akusado. Sapagkat hindi ito seremonya na walang katuturan. Ito ay proteksyon para sa akusado at sa law enforcer. Nasasayang din ang police operations pag hindi nasusunod ang proseso kasi napapawalang bisa ang mga ebidensya na nakukuha nila.

Kulang ba sa training o kulang sa pagsala ng mga tinatanggap na mga pulis? Sa bigat ng kapangyarihan na ginagawad natin sa ating mga kapulisan, dapat hindi basta basta ang napipili ng PNP. Kailangan nating silipin muli ang RA 8551, ang Philippine National Police Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998. Ano ang mga gumagana, ano ang walang silbi at ano ang inaabuso sa batas na ito?

Gusto ko din banggitin ang PNP Memorandum Circular on Guidelines, Policies and Procedures in the Conduct of Complete Background Investigation in Recruitment and Selection of PO1. One of the policies in the said circular that should be made into a law is the requirement of publication of the names of the PO1 applicants so that the communities could be involved in the reporting of derogatory records of an applicant. Itong publication ay ginagawa din ng JBC sa mga nag-aapply na judges at justices and it is very effective in sourcing background checks on applicants. We should also publish police applicants in newspapers and relevant government websites.

And all the members of the force, while they undergo review, tests, and evaluation before their promotion, I propose that maybe it should be done regularly, or when a red flag is raised with regard to a particular officer. They should have periodic mandatory drug testing, regular lifestyle check beyond what is provided in the SALN, and neuro-psychological exam.

To end my speech, I implore upon my colleagues na huwag tayo mamanhid sa pang-aabuso sa ng ilang kapulisan at huwag tayong masanay na may nakukulong na inosenteng tao. Our people deserve better. And as per our mandate, we need to elevate the poor so that they could come before the law with confidence and trust in the system.

Again, Mr. President, my dear colleagues, thank you for listening.