BY AARON RECUENCO
A report of a netizen about a birthday bash along the street in Taguig City led to the arrest of 16 people who were caught in a drinking session – the first police operation conducted since the Joint Task Force COVID Shield created a Facebook page to monitor and receive complaints of quarantine violations in the social media.
Police Lt. Gen. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, commander of the JTF COVID Shield, said the operation stemmed from at least two photos sent by a netizen to the task force’s Facebook account, COVID Shield.
The same netizen provided the location of the ongoing birthday party on the night of September 12.
As soon as the location was sent by the netizen, Police Sub-Station 9 commander Lt. Wilfredo Tanquerido ordered his men to proceed to the area in order to verify the report.
It was then that they chanced upon the suspects who were engaging in a drinking session at around 10:30 p.m. on Aguirre Street in Barangay Lower Bicutan.
“When police personnel went there, those who attended the birthday celebration were having a drinking session on the street which is a public place, not wearing face masks and not observing social distancing,” said Eleazar.
Eleazar said all those accosted were taken to the basketball court of the barangay which serves as a holding area for quarantine violators, and were released after six hours.
But they will be charged with violation of the Taguig City Ordinance Number 27-89 (Drinking in Public Places) and violation of Article 151 of the Revised Penal Code (Resistance and Disobedience to a Person in Authority).
The operation was conducted a day after the JTF COVID Shield activated its Facebook account in order to facilitate the monitoring of viral photos and videos in the social media and receiving complaints of photos and videos of quarantine violations. (Aaron Recuenco)
“The operation in Taguig City is a proof of what we as a country could achieve in terms of protecting public health if we would all work together to protect ourselves and our community from the coronavirus,” said Eleazar.
“We hope that this successful operation would encourage more of our kababayan to report to us all the quarantine violations in their community. We assure them of our quick response and the protection of their identity,” he added.
The Taguig operation became a vindication to the JTF COVID Shield, especially Eleazar who was criticized for his decision to monitor social media for blatant quarantine violations in the community like drinking sessions, large birthday parties and even illegal gambling.
Interior Secretary Eduardo Año defended last week the decision of the JTF COVID Shield to monitor social media for quarantine violations. He also urged the netizens to help the government enforce the quarantine rules, saying they are also in the better position to monitor social media for violations of protocols in their respective communities.
“We encourage the public to take photos and videos of violations of quarantine protocols and then upload them. We assure them that we will take action because this is a matter of protecting public health,” said Año.
National police chief Gen. Camilo Cascolan, for his part, emphasized the barangay-level enforcement of the quarantine protocols, saying a good coordination between the police and the barangay officials could lead to effective prevention of the spread of the Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19). (Aaron Recuenco)
