Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 23) — Sen. Bato dela Rosa reminded the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Wednesday that body cameras should be worn during all of its operations as this will not only serve as evidence to a case, but also defense if any of its personnel is harassed.
His statement comes after police involved in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Jemboy Baltazar in Navotas were unable to present footage from their body cameras during the incident on August 2. One of the policemen claimed that he forgot to turn on the device during the operation.
“Dapat lahat ng police operations ay covered by the worn camera…Ito’y nakakatulong din sa kanila pagdating sa mga harassment cases against them pwede nilang magamit itong recordings ng body-worn camera to justify their actions,” Dela Rosa told CNN Philippines’ The Source.
[Translation: The worn cameras should cover all police operations. This will also help them when it comes to harassment cases against them. They can use the recordings of the body-worn camera to justify their actions.]
The senator said that its use should be institutionalized in line with guidelines issued by the Supreme Court.
The PNP has said it has only around 2,700 body-worn cameras for its 45,000 personnel. It is proposing the procurement of 2,000 more body cameras in 2024.
Depending on what was programmed by the Department of Budget and Management, Dela Rosa said he will push for the increase in allocation for the purchase of the device once the PNP’s budget is discussed in the Senate.
The former PNP chief said what happened during the shooting of Baltazar remains unclear as authorities claim they did not see the teenager during their operations. They also said that they only fired warning shots, Dela Rosa said.
Two of the policemen involved in the incident, namely PSSg. Gerry Maliban and PCapt. Mark Carpio, were cited in contempt and ordered detained in the Senate during Tuesday’s hearing by the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs led by Dela Rosa.
