"The Philippine National Police is governed by uniform Rules of Engagement."
"The Philippine National Police is governed by uniform Rules of Engagement."
The reason for the Enhanced Community Quarantine is to prevent people from dying of the dreaded COVID-19 disease. When people are killed for violating quarantine restrictions instead of simply being arrested or told to go home, this defeats the very purpose of the lockdown.
By now, the public is very much aware of the death of retired Army Cpl. Winston Ragos. He was shot and killed by Police Master Sgt. Daniel Florendo Jr. last April 21 in Quezon City. Ragos was allegedly trying to pull a gun from his shoulder bag when accosted by a police team who were manning a checkpoint.
Some witnesses, however, dispute this police version. The Philippine National Police initially said that it was a judgement call on the part of MSg. Florendo Jr. which usually is the case in any police shooting. Why Florendo found it necessary to shoot to kill and not simply attempt to disable Ragos, I do not know. The cop is now facing a homicide case.
Records from the PNP indicate that Florendo appears to have a good service record with no derogatory reports. Ragos, on the other hand, was retired because of what is normally called complete disability discharge due to post-traumatic stress disorder.
PTSD is a condition that is not very much talked about. It is a kind of mental disorder due to combat stress. Some soldiers who experience combat are sometimes unable to adjust to normal life after their combat tours even as the vast majority of soldiers are able to. At the time of his death, Ragos was reported to be under medical care and taking medications. This was well known to most people in the barangay.
He was buried last Sunday at the Libingan Ng Mga Bayani with full military honors, including the presence of the Army Commanding General. This was very unusual, because the burial of a corporal would not ordinarily merit the presence of the Commanding General of the Army. If at all, his former Company Commander or Battalion Commander would have sufficed. Perhaps the Army simply wanted to show their great displeasure at what transpired and want something done about it. Many in the Army believe that Ragos did not have to die.
Could MSgt. Florendo have handled the situation differently? Perhaps. He could have asked for more information from the people telling him that Ragos had a mental disorder. The more information he could gather, the more options he could have had on what to do next. If his decision was to use force, he could also have simply fired to disable Ragos or tried to subdue him physically.
But because of what he did, he is now facing multiple charges. Most of all, his retirement is now imperiled. Was Florendo overworked as many of our police personnel have been continuously manning our checkpoints since March 15, which could perhaps partly explain his decision-making process? This will have to be carefully evaluated. Police personnel assigned to check point duties must be properly rested so that they can perform their duties effectively without any untoward incidents.
The Bayanihan to Heal as One Act presupposes that the lockdown be implemented in the spirit of community cooperation for the good of the public. In this instance however, it ended in the tragic death of an individual which was totally avoidable. Contrast this incident to what happened to another Police Master Sergeant in one exclusive subdivision in Makati City. It had an entirely different outcome. The incident was recorded on video by the police and the family of the foreign civilian involved from start to finish. We therefore have a fair idea of what exactly happened. The video taken by the Barangay tanod shows PMSgt. Roland Von Madrona politely explaining why they were there and the violation committed then followed by the video taken by the wife of the expat showing the physical altercation. The expat, regardless of who he is or thinks he is, was talking to police officer in the performance of his official duties and therefore could not talk that way or behave belligerently when confronted by the police. Madrano was exercising proper police procedures when he attempted to arrest the expat. In making an arrest, the police are authorized to use reasonable force to subdue a suspect. I am surprised that the companions of Madrona did not do anything to help. Perhaps the events of April 21 in Quezon City was still fresh in their minds and were avoiding another controversial incident. In this case however, MSgt Madrona was right in trying to effect arrest.
The unfortunate thing in this incident is that it was so minor that it could have been settled easily. Unfortunately, but civility and common decency were nowhere to be found that morning. The judicial process will now have to take over. The video taken of the foreigner interacting with the police is revealing as well as disconcerting. He was humiliating, insulting, mocking and was contemptuous of the policeman he was talking to.
I thought that kind of behavior ended in 1898 but some foreigners apparently still think that they can treat natives that way in this poor land of ours. It is very fortunate that this sordid episode did not end in a serious tragedy. I agree with the police action of filing charges against the individual and should include the wife for police interference in the conduct of police operations. In the two incidents, the police acted differently in enforcing the quarantine. Considering that there is only one set of rules of engagement to be followed by all police units, the PNP should ensure uniformity of procedures.