PNP chief sees no violations in UP professor’s arrest
MANILA, Philippines — There was no violation of the 1992 agreement between the University of the Philippines (UP) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in the arrest of UP Diliman professor Melania Flores, said Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr., chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
Azurin on Monday said the PNP was only implementing an arrest order issued by a “competent court” when they arrested Flores — the former president of the All UP Academic Employees Union — at her home on Feb. 6 for alleged failure to remit social security contributions by a housekeeper she formerly employed.
READ: UP professor arrested for ‘violating’ SSS law
“I don’t see any violation doon sa pag-se-serve ng ating police ng ating warrant of arrest (when the police served her the warrant of arrest),” he said in a press briefing.
The UP-DILG accord, signed by former UP President Jose Abueva and then-Interior Secretary Rafael Alunan III in 1992, requires prior notice by a police unit intending to conduct an operation in any campus of the university, except in cases of hot pursuit and similar emergencies, or in ordinary transit through UP premises.
“As far as the status of the UP-DILG agreement, I think it’s very clear naman doon. It’s about the observance of academic freedom. And of course, siguro, the manner of entering the UP campuses, nandoon din,” Azurin explained.
(As far as the status of the UP-DILG agreement, I think it’s very clear there. It’s about the observance of academic freedom. And of course, maybe, the manner of entering the UP campuses is already there.)
Flores’ arrest, according to the PNP chief, was merely the implementation of a standing warrant of arrest.
“Hindi naman naka-indicate doon (UP-DILG accord) na hindi mo pwedeng i-serve iyong warrant of arrest sa specific area. Kahit saang area, kung saan matutunton iyong wanted [person], kailangan i-serve mo iyong kanyang warrant of arrest,” he said, noting that Flores was also read her Miranda rights by the arresting officers.
(The UP-DILG accord doesn’t indicate that you’re not allowed to serve a warrant of arrest in a specific area. In any area, wherever the wanted person may be, we need to serve the warrant of arrest.)
UP officials earlier sounded the alarm on what they referred to as violations committed by the Quezon City police in arresting Flores within the campus, vowing to pursue necessary legal action to prevent a repeat of such an incident.
The Quezon City Police District (QCPD), who tagged Flores as the city’s “most wanted person,” sought a warrant for her arrest in September 2022 from Judge Maria Gilda Loja-Pangilinan of QC Regional Trial Court Branch 230.
Flores, however, said she was not aware of the existing case against her up until plainclothesmen arrested her since the court had never notified her.
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