DAVIDE
LOCAL officials in Cebu province and Cebu City welcomed the modified Oplan Tokhang as police stations nationwide started the operation on Monday.
For Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III, conducting Oplan Tokhang during broad daylight with body cameras installed on law enforcers meant transparency.
Davide said in a press briefing on Monday, that he was amenable for officers to implement Oplan Tokhang during weekdays, from 8 a.m to 5 p.m. only.
“I’m in favor of the modified Oplan Tokhang. I hope with the changes it would be more effective. If daytime, the public can really see what’s going on and the public would not cast suspicions anymore,” said Davide.
“The cameras would be useful for the evidence if there are questions on the conduct of operations. They will reveal what really happened during the Tokhang operation,” he added.
For Councilor Philip Zafra, Association of Barangay Councils Cebu City chief and Tisa barangay captain, said that he was happy with the return of the Oplan Tokhang because they could continue the gains made in the previous Tokhangs.
Zafra, however, said that the barangay captains would also like to meet with the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7) so that they could help plan which areas to really focus the operation on.
“Ang amo is that dapat ning lingkuran with PNP and PDEA aron ato ma-plot kung asa ang mas angayan nga approach matag barangay,” Zafra addded.
(We want to sit down with the PNP and PDEA so we can plot what approach we should use in each barangay)
Apas Barangay Captain Ramil Ayuman said it is a good thing that Tokhang is now back since he saw how the campaign against illegal drugs decreased.
“For the past months nakita g’yud nato nga ni lie low ang kampanya unya anugon kaayo atong reports gihatag sa police nga way action,” Ayuman said.
(For the past months we saw the campaign lie low then our reports to the police became a waste because there was no action in it)
Ayuman said that although the Barangay Anti-Drugs Abuse Council (Badac) in every village are active, it is still different if there are police and other law enforcement agencies that take the lead in Tokhang operations.
He added that this development will be good since there is still no barangay in the city declared drug free.
Starting today (Monday), the third wave of Oplan Tokhang has resumed with several police stations in Cebu City doing the rounds in their respective areas to knock on the doors of suspected drug users and peddlers (toktok), and ask them to surrender before they will be subjected to a drug bust (hangyo).
It was suspended last October, days after President Rodrigo Duterte directed the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) as the lead agency to solely conduct anti-illegal drug operations amid criticisms on the Caloocan City Police for killing three minors.
Now that the Oplan Tokhang is restored, Davide called on law enforcement agencies in the province to not resort to extrajudicial killings (EJKs).
“With the changes, dili unta mahitabo ang mga EJK (EJKs will not happen). There were some police accused of committing EJKs,” he stated.