Scene of Gov. Degamo killing (Sunstar)
MANILA — Senator Ramon Bong Revilla, Jr. has urged the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to immediately implement a one-strike policy on police officials and personnel in areas where heinous acts of violence are perpetrated.
This is in light of the recent spate of assassinations of elected local government officials, the latest of which was the killing of Negros Oriental where Governor Roel Degamo.
“May one-strike policy naman ang PNP. Bakit sa mga kaso ng illegal gambling, lewd shows, pati sa mga patupada, one-strike — automatic na relieved, pero dito sa mismong atake sa ating demokrasya — ang pagpatay sa ating mga halal na opisyal, walang one-strike?,” the lawmaker asked.
According to Revilla, PNP officials where gruesome acts of violence are carried should immediately be relieved from their posts, be made accountable, and depending on the facts in each case, should be penalized for their failures.
He added that the PNP must conduct a swift yet thorough cleansing of their ranks to eliminate rogue members who may have turned blind eyes or may be involved in illegal activities.
“Ang mga pagpaslang na ito… ang brutal na pagdanak ng dugo sa walang saysay na angas-angasan, ay direktang pambabalasubas sa umiiral na batas sa ating bayan, at isang malaking sampal sa ating demokrasiya. The fear that it sows in our people threatens our democracy at its very core. And the fact that they seem unbridled speak much of how the PNP seems to be failing,” he explained. “Kaya kailangan itong one-strike policy.”
“Hindi ako nawawalan ng pag-asa sa ating pulisya,” Revilla ended. (Amado Inigo/MTVN)
