PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) Chief Debold Sinas said on Thursday, December 17, that he will order the stoppage of gimmicks being done by the police if he finds out that it causes anxiety to the public.
"Wala naman 'yun sa regular directive namin. Baka initiative lang po ng mga lower units natin. Titingnan ko po kung ano ang nangyari, maybe kung it's good, then we could support it but if it already caused anxiety sa publiko at sa mga kababayan natin, I will direct them to stop such practices po," he said in a television interview.
"Alamin ko pa po kung ano ang sitwasyon na 'yan baka kung ano 'yung gimmick ng pulis natin doon. I have no actual knowledge po doon. Maybe, I'll talk to those in charge po doon, at alamin kung how it was carried out, kung ano 'yung intention, ano 'yung program. Baka sa kanila lang po 'yun and they want just to impress people," he added.
Sinas made the statement in response to a prank being pulled off by the Cebu City Police office where they arrest civilians using a fake arrest warrant but their real intention is to give them Christmas gifts.
READ: Police take flak for Christmas prank
The police called it “arrestoguinaldo,” a combined word for arrest and aguinaldo, which is a Filipino tradition of gift-giving during the Christmas holidays.
PNP spokesperson Brigadier General Ildebrandi Usana said the idea seemed to come from foreign videos and “victims” may end up “shocked or laughing as the result of such an unexpected situation.”
"We have seen this in some local reality programs naman po. Some have worked, some have not," he said.
But Usana said such gimmicks are no good especially for the image of the PNP, which is being criticized over the alleged violation to human rights.
"Dapat po ang mga pulis natin ay maayos sa pakikitungo sa mga mamamayan... Di po ito kailangang haluan ng anumang masasabing panilinlang, anuman po ang motibo," he said.
"Bagamat ang mga ganyang klaseng pranks ay nag-trending sa ibang bansa, hindi po ibig sabihin maging part ito ng kaisipan sa hanay ng kapulisan na 'mambiktima' ng mga inosenteng sibilyan," he added.
Some “victims” did not take the policemen’s joke very well.
Usana said the PNP is willing to assist the “victims” should they decide to file a case against the policemen involved.
In a statement, Bayan Muna lawmaker Ferdinand Gaite slammed the effort of the police, saying it adds to the anxiety being experienced by the public amid the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
"Instead of holiday cheers, this ill-conceived gimmick brings chills and causes unwarranted stress and shame to its victims, people who might already be under a lot of stress due to the pandemic and the bad economy. Hindi nakakatuwa. Itigil na lang nila 'yan," he said.
"Pwede nga maaresto ang isang sibilyan kung mag-prank call siya sa PNP Hotline, tapos ganitong gimmick pa ang naisipan nila, hindi talaga maganda. Pasko po ang parating, not April Fool's," he added.
Earlier, Sinas also said they are not encouraging the use of Santa cops, or policemen dressed as Santa Claus while distributing gifts and conducting patrolling.
“Actually, kung mapansin mo konti na lang ‘yung santa cops hindi ba. Marami na pong social distancing patrols. I did not discouarage the santa cops but hindi ko rin ine-encourage. What we are directing for our units to deploy social distancing,” he said.
“So ngayon may mga ibang unit nareceive namin nag deploy sila ng santa cops para lang po siguro malibang ‘yung mga tao at macaught yung attention nila at mabigyan po ng instructions but very minimal na lang po. What we really need are the social distancing patrollers,” he added.
Sinas said criminals may also use the idea of wearing Santa costumes so they can be hardly identified when they commit crimes and they can also be attributed to the PNP. (SunStar Philippines)