MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) will be closely working with the local government of Borongan City in Eastern Samar in the investigation of a police official who allegedly breached quarantine protocols after ignoring a checkpoint in the city, the PNP Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG) said on Thursday.
“Umasa po kayo at aaksyon po tayo diyan sa mga lalabag sa guidelines. Kay (Lt.) Col. Joel Ana, aaksyunan po natin yan. Makipag-ugnayan po tayo sa local government unit ng Borongan,” PNP-HPG Brig. Gen. Eliseo Cruz said over Teleradyo when asked about Ana who reportedly ignored the quarantine control point to go to his home in Borongan City which remains free of COVID-19.
(Trust that we will act on this supposed violation of guidelines. We will act on Col. Ana. We will act on this and coordinate with the Borongan local government unit.)
Cruz said Ana, who is from Borongan City and is assigned at the HPG headquarters in Camp Crame, called him up to inform him about an “official visit” to Region VIII to deliver firearms in Borongan City last Saturday.
“Siya naman po kasi talaga yung aming logistics officer, siya po talaga yung inuutusan ko na mag-deliver nung mga supplies coming from national headquarters of the PNP. Siguro po talagang personal din na niyang gustong makarating dun sa Region VIII kasi kahapon ko nga lang nalaman na taga-Borongan siya,” Cruz said.
(He is the logistics officer tasked to deliver supplies coming from PNP Headquarters. Maybe it is also a personal visit because he really wants to go to Region VII because I only found that he is from Borongan.)
Quoting Ana, Cruz said Ana and his escort slowed down at the checkpoint in Borongan City and were not stopped by the police officers manning the quarantine control point.
“’Yun pong paliwanag niya (Ana) kahapon na mayroon nga raw naging issue sa kanyang pag-punta sa Borongan, Samar ay nag-slow down daw sila hindi naman daw sila pinara. Kumaway lang daw yung mga nasa checkpoint sa kanila,” Cruz said.
(Ana’s explanation yesterday that there was an issue on his visit to Borongan, Samar, he said they slowed down and he was not asked to stop. The enforcers at the checkpoint just let them pass.)
Nonetheless, Cruz said they will look into the facts and violations of lockdown protocols in the incident.
“Siguro po titignan natin ‘yan kung ano pong mga pangyayari na yon, imbestigahan natin yan kung ano pang mga violation dun sa protocols ng local government unit,” he said.
(We will look into this incident. We will investigate the violations of protocols of the local government unit.)
Last June 8, police officers who accompanied San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora were relieved after passing through at Baguio City without stopping at checkpoints. The nation’s police force also launched a probe into the law enforcers’ violations of quarantine rules. (with a reports from Jim Mendoza).