MANILA, Philippines — A law should be created to give more teeth to the Internal Affairs Service (IAS) of the Philippine National Police to cleanse the PNP of scalawags, according to senatorial candidate and former PNP chief Guillermo Eleazar.
Eleazar told “The Chiefs” aired on One News Monday night that he ran because he believes he is young and can still do something for the betterment of the country.
“After almost four decades in the PNP, in the service, I have seen the deep connection between the peace and order and the social problems. This is what enticed me. I am still young. I can offer myself to the service of the people,” he said.
“So, that is my only motivation. But the capability as well as the opportunity with this democratic system that we have, there is still a chance to serve our fellow Filipinos,” he added.
Eleazar admitted that there are still a few groups of policemen who engage in illegal activities.
Should he win in the May 9 senatorial race, Eleazar said he would pursue two pieces of legislation.
“First is for the improvement of the operational capability of the PNP because we are seeing right now that there are some lacking in PNP. Compared with the Armed Forces of the Philippines, it has the AFP modernization program. The PNP lacks many things, and it needs modern approaches in the investigation and crime detection,” he said.
“We also need to have physical evidence to improve our investigation. Other thing, of course, along with this, is discipline. Right now, with the present set up, we can strengthen the Internal Affairs Service (IAS) which is conducting investigation and abuse or lapses of our PNP. We know that the IAS function is only recommendatory and through legislation or amendment we can strengthen it,” he said.
“I believe in the idea that the best crime prevention strategy is the assurance that those who will be committing crimes, not only with the PNP, but including our fellow Filipinos, is the assurance that you will be caught and punished. The operational and admi,” he added.
He added that he has been pushing for the immediate implementation of the use of body cameras for PNP personnel.
“It is not yet totally implemented, but we have seen that this will give protection not only to the public, but also to the PNP. Well, I can say unfair allegations to the PNP and that is what we are seeing through that transparency and accountability we can still fix that, we can improve that,” Eleazar said.
The PNP-IAS has found lapses in 52 drug war cases, according to Eleazar.
In the same interview with “The Chiefs,” Eleazar said the lapses were found by the Department of Justice, which reviewed the 52 cases that the PNP presented or submitted to the DOJ during his stint as PNP chief.
“When we submitted those cases and when I asked the Inspector General of the IAS, these are the cases that we found lapses. Lapses and we are expecting that the respondent there who are policemen were given sanction. I was surprised that after the review, because we submitted it, many were absolved,” he added.
Eleazar also said the Philippines is not ready for divorce.
He stressed that since annulment is the only available means and remedy to free separated couples from the bond of marriage, the government should simplify and hasten the annulment process.
Number one factor for the country being not yet ready for divorce is religious belief, according to the former PNP chief.
Economic recovery
Senatorial candidate and House Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda has vowed to pursue programs that will boost the country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Legarda specifically committed to push for legislative measures for income generation of Filipinos such as job creation and business support and development should she win in the elections for a fourth term at the Senate.
“We should continue to push for job creation and livelihood programs, especially since we are not yet over the fight against the pandemic. The right pathway towards pandemic recovery is through economic empowerment of every Filipino family. We have pushed for government programs that would provide income generation to Filipinos in coordination with DOLE, DSWD, DTI, and TESDA,” she said.
Apart from creating jobs, Legarda said it is also important to “utilize our existing resources and invest in the country’s industrial, economic and social development through multi-sectoral collaboration.”
“Our country has very rich resources. Each province has the potential to grow and be a venue for trade and investments. What we need is to strengthen support to each province and give LGUs the opportunity to enrich their resources. Empowering and improving our business environment will eventually lead to the economic growth of the country, addressing unemployment and alleviating poverty,” she said.
No midnight nuke pact
Senatorial aspirant and human rights lawyer Chel Diokno has urged the Duterte administration not to enter into any midnight nuclear power agreement, saying it should let the next administration pursue its own energy agenda.
“While we acknowledge that the electricity problem is an urgent matter, it would be best for the Duterte government not to enter into any nuclear or any other power deals during its remaining three months in power,” Diokno said.
He specifically opposed a possible partnership with Russia, citing the Duterte government’s earlier announcement that it has entered into a cooperation agreement with Russia for a pre-feasibility study on a nuclear power program.
“It is not good for the government to enter into any agreement with Russia, especially since it is behind the conflict that affected oil prices worldwide,” Diokno said in Filipino, referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The Duterte government should let the next administration decide on the programs that will resolve our electricity problems. By doing this, we will be assured that the contracts will be clear and aboveboard and will not be an added burden for the people,” he added.
Diokno had earlier questioned the government’s decision to include nuclear energy as a source of electricity, saying there are safer and cleaner options that it can consider, such as renewable energy.
‘Apprenticeship’
Sen. Risa Hontiveros highlighted the need to strengthen and expand the country’s existing apprenticeship programs to address the current needs of the youth sector.
Hontiveros identified the target youth apprentices as those 15 to 24 years old, particularly the ones who stopped going to school or have not been able to land jobs due to problems arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I believe that through apprenticeship programs, parents’ confidence in the value of education will be restored. For the youth to help themselves and their families,” she added. – Cecille Suerte Felipe, Janvic Mateo, Edu Punay