The killing of two unarmed civilians by a police officer in Tarlac will not trigger any changes in the Philippine National Police (PNP) because it was an isolated incident, a spokesman said Tuesday, but the Commission on Human Rights disputed this claim.
Speaking to the ANC news channel, PNP spokesman Brig. Gen. Ildebrandi Usana said the incident in which Police Master Senior Sgt. Jonel Nuezca shot Sonia Gregorio, 55, and her son Frank Anthony, 25, in the head at point-blank range in Paniqui, Tarlac, due to a dispute over a holiday noisemaker, was an isolated incident and said it would “not even trigger any change at all in the PNP” because reforms were already in place.
Murder charges have been filed and Nuezca would soon be dismissed, he said.
Usana added that Nuezca’s actions, which he said were abominable, did not represent the 221,000 officers in the police force.
The killing of the Gregorios was captured on video and widely shared on the internet, triggering public outrage and demands for police reform.
In a separate ANC interview, Human Rights Commissioner Karen Dumpit disputed police claims that the shooting was an isolated incident.
“It's not really an isolated case. If you take a look at the language, if you take a look at the applause that comes after each and every killing. And we're not just talking about this case, there have been many in the past," she said.
Following the killing of the Gregorios, the police chief of Bato town in Catanduanes, Police Capt. Ariel Buraga, said in a Facebook post that the shooting “will teach people, even if they have white hair, to respect police.”
Buraga has been relieved and his Facebook post has since been taken down.
Dumpit expressed disappointment over the PNP’s lack of cooperation in the CHR investigation into possible lapses in police operations.
“Whenever there's a death following a police operation, they would not share information. When there are vigilante killings, the investigation is not forthcoming," she said.
“Non-cooperation is really a signal that they're not open to engage and show and demonstrate that they’re trying to respond to the situation properly,” she added.
She also said leaders must be careful in their remarks to avoid being misconstrued by their subordinates.
"That's why we've been saying all along, the easiest thing to do is… change your language. Make it positive. The substance of the language should be to preserve human lives. It should be respectful of human rights," she said.
“Stop words that incite hatred, words that incite violence because that's the one that enables law enforcement agencies to commit this kind of acts,” she said.
The Palace urged the public not to use the Tarlac killings to generalize about the police.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said most police were respected because they put their lives on the line to do their job.
At the same time, he reminded police officers that “it takes only one of you to destroy the reputation and integrity of the institution.”
Although video footage left no doubt of the guilt of Nuezca, the PNP Internal Affairs Service said it would take a month to dismiss the killer.
NP-IAS Director General Alfegar Triambulo said in a radio interview that they would try to complete the process for dismissal in 30 days.
Triambulo said video taken during the incident is a big factor in the course of the investigation.
Despite Usana’s comments that the shooting would not trigger any changes in the police force, PNP chief Gen. Debold Sinas said he would consider anger management training for cops.
Sinas said he had already consulted with experts from the PNP Health Service as to why Nuezca went berserk and shot and killed his two neighbors in Paniqui, Tarlac on Sunday.
“We might also have a new study on anger management of our people. I want to come up with a study and how it (the result of the study) could be converted to a module for anger management,” Sinas told reporters.
Citing the results of an initial discussion with PNP neuropsychiatrists, Sinas said that what happened in Paniqui was a case of mishandling a confrontation due to a sudden burst of anger.
He said this was manifested by Nuezca himself when he decided to surrender and face the charges, apparently after his anger simmered down.
On Monday, murder charges were filed before the Paniqui, Tarlac Regional Trial Court against Nuezca. No bail was recommended by the prosecutors.
Meanwhile, the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) on Tuesday appealed to the public to spare the 12-year-old daughter of Nuezca from condemnation and cyberbullying.
Nuezca's daughter became the subject of bullying on social media after the video of the shooting spread like wildfire on social media.
Nuezca’s daughter was seen on the video arguing with victim Sonya Gregorio moments before her father shot Sonya in the head.
“My father is a policeman!” she could be heard saying on the video.
"The child's behavior may have infuriated people, having spewed unintended words during the incident's filming. However, the child's cognitive ability to control emotional impulse and regulate emotions are still under development at the early stage of her childhood," the CWC said in a statement.
"In a simpler context, a child's behavior, in general, is a product of his or her environment. It will reflect the kind of parenting he or she received, how the key persons in his or her life behave and interact with one another, and possibly being raised in a prevailing culture of violence that tolerates impunity," it added.
"Alarmingly, the child has also witnessed the violent act committed by her own father towards his victims."