Amid this crisis, volunteers work hard, but it seems the police are working harder.
On Friday May 1, police officers arrested 10 relief volunteers in Marikina City and were thus detained. The charge: allegedly violating enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) rules.
Inquirer quoted Marikina Mayor Marcelino Teodoro, saying “nag-overreact ’yung PNP (Philippine National Police), eh. Hindi dapat inaresto dahil wala namang ginagawang masama ’yung mga kababayan natin,” he said in a statement.
According to the mayor, the volunteers were were practicing social distancing while distributing relief packages. He also cited the volunteers’ placards which called for mass testing as a probable cause of the polices’ reaction. Teodoro, however, said that these are only in line with the volunteers’ constitutional rights of freedom of expression.
There has yet to be any response or statement from the side of the Marikina police.
Header photo courtesy of Marikina City PIO Facebook page
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Writer: PAULINE MIRANDA
