MANILA – The Philippine National Police (PNP) warned that curfew violators under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) will now be arrested as the number of offenders continue to rise.
PNP Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar said in a radio interview on Sunday that they cannot be lenient on curfew violators as it will defeat the purpose of the enhanced community quarantine declaration.
“Dahil na rin po sa request ng ating local government chief executives, hindi po kami magiging lenient dito. Tuloy pa rin po ang pag-aresto,” Eleazar, commander of the Joint Task Force Corona Virus Shield (JTF CV Shield), said in an interview with DZBB.
“We cannot be lenient because this will definitely defeat the purpose of the declaration of the Enhanced Community Quarantine which President Duterte approved purposely to contain the COVID-19,” he added.
The JTF CV Shield, the enforcement arm of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, said a total of 42,826 curfew violators were apprehended in the first 11 days of the declaration in light of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Eleazar said the enforcement will be a little lenient against curfew violators by allowing them to go home after booking them instead of detaining them until they posted bail but it was rebuffed by the Department of Interior and Local Government.
Eleazar, however, changed his tune on Sunday after the Department of Justice activating an online inquest proceeding.
“Sila po ay dadalhin sa police station for booking. Through the electronic or online inquest proceeding, ire-refer natin ang kasong ‘yan sa skeletal force ng ating Office of the Prosecutor,” Eleazar said.
“If the curfew violators will be released over a decision that the regular filing of the case will be done after the ECQ, curfew violators must be held for a maximum of 12 hours while being admonished so as to deter them from repeating the offense,” he added./PN
Control is not social distancing. A nightly curfew violates social distancing by concentrating people instead of spreading them out. It is better if I go to the ATM at 11p because there are fewer people around. Break up parties and gatherings instead of wasting manpower enforcing a curfew