PNP chief welcomes Apple decision to drop ‘Tokhang’ mobile games

Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), welcomed the decision of Apple to take down the mobile games inspired by Oplan Tokhang, which he said misrepresented the government’s fight against criminality, particularly illegal drugs.

The games featured President Rodrigo Duterte and the police chief fighting and killing criminals.

“Mali naman ang interpretation. Hindi naman barilan yung tokhang,” Dela Rosa told reporters after attending the Supreme Court oral arguments on the war on drugs on Tuesday.

[They made the wrong interpretation. Tokhang is not about gunbattles.]

“Tokhang means to knock and plead. Makikiusap lang para ka magbagong buhay,” Dela Rosa said.

[Tokhang means to knock and plead. We’re just pleading with them to change their lives.]

Last month, the Asian Network of People who Use Drugs (ANPUD) launched a petition campaign for Apple to take down the “Tokhang Mobile Games” because of its sensitive content.

The group recently said that, while they did not receive any statement from Apple, it was no longer appearing in search results of the Apple app store.

The games included “Duterte Knows Kung Fu: Pinoy Crime Fighter,” “Duterte Running Man Challenge Game,” “Fighting Crime 2,” amd “Tsip Bato: Ang Bumangga Giba!”/atm