Police personnel at a checkpoint along V. Rama Avenue in Baranagay Calamba check motorists for proper travel passes on June 25, 2020, two days since quarantine passes were suspended. CDN Digital photo | Gerard Vincent Francisco
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella urged the those who were arrested despite not violating the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) guidelines to report this types of abuse to him.
This after reports have surfaced that many individuals, including vendors returning to their homes from the public markets, BPO workers, and even grocery clerks, have been apprehended for violating ECQ guidelines even if they were exempted individuals.
CDN Digital also received a complaint from a person who requested anonymity, saying that a driver of a delivery truck traversing Barangay Labangon reportedly got struck on the head by a police officer after the latter couldn’t understand the explanation of the former who was delivering goods at night.
Mayor Labella urge victims to report these incidents to his office, saying that although the implementation of the ECQ is on its strictest yet, the police and law enforcement should remain just.
“If there are really violations of enforcement, I would advise, come to my office, we will act accordingly. If you are really positive that the police committed an infraction of the law, come to my office and we will act accordingly,” said Labella.
President Rodrigo Duterte already said that there is no martial law in Cebu City, but Secretary Roy Cimatu, the man tasked to oversee the COVID-19 situation in Cebu, is given a free rein to control the situation here.
Labella earlier urged the public to stay calm amidst the decision of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) to cancel the validity of the quarantine passes in Cebu City late night on Tuesday, June 23, 2020.
Read: Labella to Cebu City residents: Stay calm, follow ECQ guidelines
But the mayor wants residents not to be afraid to complain about possible abuses, especially if they have evidence of these abuses. /bmjo