Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson speaks during one of the Senate hearings. Senate PRIB file photo / Voltaire F. Domingo
MANILA, Philippines—Like the quarantine violator now known as “Poblacion girl,” her “connections” must be held liable too, Senator Panfilo Lacson said Wednesday.
“While the filing of charges for violation of RA 11332 is one positive step, there is a second step that is equally important — make her “connections” liable,” Lacson said in a Twitter post on Wednesday.
“NAGPABAYA O NAGPABAYAD (whether they became negligent or accepted a bribe) does not make much difference. The PALAKASAN (patronage) system must stop,” the presidential aspirant added.
A complaint has already been filed before the Makati City Prosecutor’s Office against the quarantine violator and eight others, including her parents, for violations of Republic Act No. 11332 or the Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Health Concern Act.
After arriving from the United States on Dec. 22 , the violator reportedly partied in a bar in Poblacion, Makati when she was supposed to be in a quarantine hotel. She later tested positive for COVID-19, and infected several others in the party venue.
“Hindi siya nag-quarantine…Itong taong ito, pagkadating niya (sa Pilipinas), the next day, umikot na ng Poblacion (a barangay — that is, a village — in Makati City which is also a popular tourism hub). Hindi lang ‘yon, nagyabang pa na may koneksyon daw siya,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat was earlier quoted as saying.
(She did not go into quarantine…This person, when she returned, the next day, went around Poblacion. Not only that, she even boasted to her companions that she has connections.)
In light of these continued quarantine breaches, Senator Nancy Binay pushed for stiffer penalties against those who would be found deliberately violating protocols.
“Increasingly, the need to ensure compliance is becoming more urgent, Binay said in a statement. “Mukhang hindi na sapat ang internal policing dahil patuloy pa rin ang quarantine violations na nababalita na mula pa sa simula.”
(It seems that the internal policing is not enough since there have been reports of quarantine violations.)
She also reiterated her call for quarantine marshals, which she thinks is a more “holistic approach” than tapping policemen to man quarantine facilities.
According to her, “police deployment would not necessarily weed out the corruption that is at the heart of the issue.”
“Corruption issue naman ito at hindi issue ng order,” she said. “What we need is a system that would weed out corruption. Hindi dapat band-aid solution ang mga pulis na itatapal natin sa bawat problema ng bansa.”
“This is, again, a public health issue, and we need public health experts. At best, what we need is a hybrid approach that would respond to the public safety and law enforcement aspects. Pero hindi lang dapat pulis,” the senator stressed.
Binay then proposed tapping barangay watchmen, assisted by a health officer, as marshals with the help of the Inter-Agency Task Force and Department of Tourism which will brief and train them.