THE Cagayan de Oro Press Club Inc. (COPC) is asking the Philippine National Police (PNP) to look into and possibly replace spokesperson of the Police Regional Office (PRO)-Northern Mindanao after several media practitioners complained of alleged intimidation and suppression of their rights.
In a letter dated February 5 to PRO-Northern Mindanao Director Timoteo Pacleb, the club cited reports of the removal of three members of the media from the PRO-Northern Mindanao PIO News Update chat group on Facebook on two separate occasions as supposedly ordered by PRO-Northern Mindanao spokesperson Superintendent Lemuel Gonda.
The PRO-Northern Mindanao PIO News Update chat group was created by the information office of PRO-Northern Mindanao to inform and update local media on the most recent operations and accomplishments of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in the region.
The chat group is a source of information for most local journalists.
According to the letter, Joana Ricote, a reporter of dxCC-RMN, was removed from the said chat group last December 4, 2017 after "she complained and threatened to boycott PRO-Northern Mindanao media coverages when she and other reporters were barred from entering the Capitol University Medical Center" when Pacleb visited several wounded-in-action police officers confined there.
Divina Suson, a Philippine Daily Inquirer correspondent and Iligan City based dxIC-RMN stringer, and Sheryl Macale, a Radyo Natin commentator and Mindanao Daily News correspondent, were also removed from the same chat group last February 2.
Suson and Macale said they were complaining why Gonda at that time did not answer their query or provide an explanation regarding detained Communist Party of the Philippines official Rommel Salinas, who the PRO-Northern Mindanao information office said was "arrested" considering that he was already under custody of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in Ozamiz City.
"The action of Supt. (Superintendent) Gonda to ban these journalists from the PRO 10 PIO News Update chat group is a form of intimidation, and worse, a means to suppress the freedom of the press since they could no longer access information coming from the PNP-10 (Northern Mindanao) for their news reports," said the COPC, in its letter.
It was also stated that the action of Gonda also "runs counter with the executive order of President Rodrigo Duterte on the Freedom of Information he signed just after he assumed office in Malacanang."
rThe COPC added that Gonda should have "acted like an officer and a gentleman" when faced with such situation and must exercise "maximum tolerance" in dealing with the members of the press.
"In view thereof, we would like to request your good office to address this issue as soon as possible vis-a-vis, conduct an immediate investigation, and if possible, appoint someone who can manage the PRO-10 (Northern Mindanao) information office with utmost professionalism and respect of the freedom of the press," said the COPC.
The COPC has also expressed hope for an immediate action on the matter and that the local media community and PRO-Northern Mindanao will maintain their partnership to uphold press freedom.