CHR to PNP: Observe due process in probe of cop accused of rape

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) reminded the Philippine National Police (PNP) to observe due process in finding out if administrative and criminal charges can be filed against the police officer who allegedly raped a drug suspect’s 15-year-old daughter.

PO1 Eduardo Valencia was arrested on Sunday for allegedly raping the minor in exchange for the freedom of her parents who were arrested for alleged possession of illegal drugs.

READ: Albayalde: ‘No mercy for cop accused of rape if found guilty’

“There is then no acceptable excuse when our police officers become the first ones to violate our laws and the people’s rights, especially the vulnerable,” CHR Spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia said in a statement on Monday.

“It is more alarming that, aside from the rising number of alleged deaths linked to the anti-drug campaign, the police officer in question claims that such violation is a standard practice among operatives,” she added.

De Guia also said that given such assertions, the government should urgently “address this incident and ensure that their promised internal cleansing leads to a better police force, and the entire government bureaucracy at large, strongly committed to upholding our laws and the rights of all.”

“We have to stay focused on demanding accountability from the government at all cost,” she said.

“To this end, CHR-NCR is already investigating the case,” she added. /ee