DILG: ACT complaints mere ploy to earn sympathy, votes

MANILA, Philippines — The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) party-list group filed complaints against government and police officials merely to gain sympathy and votes for the May 2019 elections, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Tuesday.

In a statement, the DILG said people should be “vigilant and discerning” for the elections.

“This Ombudsman case is simply an attempt to earn precious media mileage before the May elections,” the DILG said. “We are dismayed that ACT has chosen to politicize this issue to increase name recall.”

“Since this series of cases filed before the courts is clearly a propaganda ploy to earn public sympathy to earn votes for their party-list group, we urge the public to be vigilant and discerning ahead of the forthcoming elections,” it added.

On Monday, ACT filed a complaint against Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Director General Oscar Albayalde, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Chief Director Guillermo Eleazar, and other high-ranking police officials before the Office of the Ombudsman for their supposed role in profiling teachers aligned with ACT.

ACT accused the respondent of violating the teachers’ constitutional rights to association, assembly, airing grievances, privacy, freedom of expression, and protection of labor.

ACT also accused them of violating the Data Privacy Act, Election Code, Administrative Code, and the norms of conduct of public officials.

“These are misplaced reliance on constitutional and statutory protections which time and again, as upheld by the Supreme Court, must give way to legitimate and compelling State interest,” the DILG said. “We wish to reiterate that the alleged violations of ACT’s right to association, assembly, or to petition the government is clearly a figment of their imagination and devoid of any evidence or basis.”

Previously, leaders of ACT decried the supposed harassment of government forces towards a legitimate organization, as well as the administration’s red-tagging of progressive groups.

After this, Albayalde announced the relief of intelligence officers for leaking information about intelligence operations — specifically profiling teachers belonging to ACT, which they considered a legal front of communist rebels.

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The DILG justified this move against ACT, saying it was essential to law enforcement, specifically in fighting the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New Peoples Army, and the National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

“The DILG and the PNP reiterate its stand that intelligence-gathering is part and parcel of effective law enforcement. The PNP will be remiss in its job if it lets the revelation of CPP founder Joma Sison — that ACT is among the CPP-NPA-NDF’s communist fronts — pass,” the DILG explained. “The PNP shall continue to perform its task of protecting the right to life, liberty, and property of the people while making sure that legitimate dissent, done within the bounds of law, is respected.” /atm