Law on ‘one-strike’ policy vs village chiefs, cops over road obstructions pushed

MANILA, Philippines — Manila Mayor Isko Moreno is calling for the creation of a law that would hold barangay chairmen and police officers liable for failure to clear roads of any obstructions at the very first offense.

Moreno proposed on Tuesday that the barangay chiefs and police personnel with jurisdiction over an area having road obstructions be suspended, and demotion for police officers, at the first commission of the violation.

“Dapat magkaroon na ng basic law na ‘pag mayroong ganun (obstruction), dapat automatic, administatively liable ‘yung barangay chairman, ‘yung lespu (pulis),” Moreno proposed during a hearing initiated by the Senate committee on local government.

“The best way to do it, basta nag-exist, automatic strike one na. Kapag sinabing testing testing muna, tikim tikim, lalo lang lilito. There must be certainty so that we in the local government are following one direction,” he added.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno attends the Senate hearing on local government issues on August 6. INQUIRER.net photo / CATHY MIRANDA

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año supported Moreno’s call for a law. He said the law will be on top of a Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) memorandum circular directing local government officials to clear their roads of obstructions within a 60-day period.

READ: 60-day countdown for LGUs to clear public roads starts Monday – Año

“Pabor ako diyan. One-strike policy. Magkaroon ng batas para sigurado na tuluy tuloy itong ginagawa nating paglilinis,” Año told reporters in an interview in the sidelines of the hearing.

“Ang sinasabi ni Mayor Isko Moreno definite ‘yung actions na pwedeng parusahan ng batas lalo na particularly itong pag-maintain ng roads. Pwedeng gawing batas to institutionalize,” he added.

In his fourth State of the Nation Sona, President Rodrigo Duterte instructed the government to “reclaim” all public roads being used for private purposes. /jpv

READ: Duterte orders Año: Suspend mayors, governors refusing to clear public roads