MANILA (UPDATE)— The Philippine National Police (PNP) said Thursday it was investigating the reported trespassing of police officers into the compound of labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) in Quezon City.
In a statement, PNP Chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said he asked the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Quezon City Police District to look into the allegations against the officers.
"Kailangang matukoy ang mga personnel na nagtungo sa opisina ng TUCP at pagpapaliwanagin natin sila kung ano ba ang dahilan ng kanilang pagpunta doon," Eleazar said.
(We need to identify the personnel who went to the TUCP office and have them explain why they went there.)
The PNP had received information that at least six police officers went to the TUCP compound in Diliman last Tuesday without any permission from the group or a search warrant.
The officers reportedly took photos of the daily attendance list and interrogated group members.
Eleazar said the PNP would determine if the cops followed protocols when they entered the TUCP compound.
"Kung mayroong hindi nasunod sa protocols ay hindi naman natin ito palalagpasin at agad naming aaksyunan," he said.
(If there are protocols that the cops did not follow, we will take action against that.)
Meanwhile, Partido Lakas ng Masa vice presidential candidate Walden Bello slammed the incident.
In a statement, Bello said the constitutional rights of workers and labor organizers should be respected.
“The police have no right to waltz into a union office and entitle themselves to forcibly interrogate just anyone without even a warrant. The police should stop acting as if they're gods expecting everyone to bow down to billionaires’ whims. They have to be reminded that it's the toiling workers that they should serve and protect,” Bello said.
“That police thugs have been emboldened to ramp up their brazen attacks on unionists and the labor movement is a patent demonstration of the Duterte regime's continuing threat to democracy in the country,” he added.
Bello is running with labor leader Leody De Guzman for the 2022 elections.
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Philippine National Police, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, labor, labor group, police investigation, Walden Bello