PNP eyes checkpoint policy shift as ‘riding in tandem’ cases drop
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) said changes in checkpoint policies are now in the offing amid decreasing “riding in tandem” cases in the country.
PNP chief General Rommel Francisco Marbil made the pronouncement amid the perceived selectiveness of the checkpoints, which appears to be targeting motorcycle riders.
“So [we] will be changing how we conduct the checkpoint,” Marbil said in an ambush interview at an event in Quezon City on Friday.
“We have to change because, as I said, there is not much riding in tandem appearing in our reports so we have to change how we conduct yung checkpoints,” Marbil also said, partly in Filipino.
The police have yet to release updated numbers on cases involving riding-in-tandems.
Marbil made the comment as 1-Rider Partylist released a memorandum issued by PNP’s directorate for operations dated June 22 to reiterate the proper conduct of checkpoint operations.
The order, signed by Directorate for Operations director Brig. Gen. Nicholas Salvador, reiterated the need for “all types of vehicles” to undergo “random checking.”
Salvador made the memo in response to “observation from the stakeholders in the selective implementation of checkpoint operations by operating units that reached the attention of the PNP leadership.”
Policies seen as discriminatory against motorcycle riders have been implemented before.
In Mandaluyong City, an ordinance prohibited males from back-riding on a motorcycle — except if the driver is their first-degree family member or if they are seven to ten years old — in a move seen to prevent riding-in-tandem crimes. The Court of Appeals declared this ordinance unconstitutional in 2021.
READ: CA retains decision Mandaluyong’s rule vs tandem riding unconstitutional
