Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 24) — Employees who will receive their shots during the three-day COVID-19 vaccination event on Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 will not considered as absent and should not receive pay deductions, Palace announced on Wednesday.
During the hearing of the Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs, together with the committee on justice and human rights, direct superiors of police officers caught firing their weapons illegally may soon be held liable.
The proposal was made by Philippine National Police chief Gen. Dionardo Carlos, who said the immediate officer will be relieved if one of his subordinates is found guilty of the act.
“The immediate supervisor of the violator will also be relieved. For example, a particular police officer violated indiscriminate firing, he has an immediate supervisor who will also be relived because he did not take his role as a big brother or big sister to our policeman,” said Carlos.
But for committee chair Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, not one but two of the guilty police officer’s superiors should be punished.
“So dapat dalawa ang tatamaan — ang kanyang immediate supervisor sa National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO) for failure to remind this officer about indiscriminate firing, and area commander or yung chief of police ng municipality kung saan siya nagpaputok dahil ibig sabihin hindi siya nagpa-patrolya. Hindi sila nag-i-implement ng maximum deployment,” said Dela Rosa.
[Translation: Two other persons should be held liable — the guilty police officer’s immediate superior in the NCRPO for failure to remind him about indiscriminate firing, and the area commander or the chief of police of the municipality where the incident happened because it means they are not patrolling the area. It means they are not implementing maximum deployment.]
Senate Bill No. 1531 is currently under deliberation. If passed into law, it would provide stiffer penalties for the indiscriminate use of firearms.
During this year’s New Year celebrations, a stray bullet claimed the life of a 12-year-old girl in Lanao del Norte.
