COLUMN: Goodbye “CRIMINAL ISTAMBAYS”! – ‘SHARP EDGES’ by Jake J. Maderazo

By Jake J. Maderazo June 23, 2018 - 07:24 AM

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Oplan RODY (Rid the Streets of Drinkers and Youths) is in full swing with the arrest of 400 persons in Eastern police District yesterday , 102 persons in QC , 100 in Las Piñas, and 60 others in Manila this weekend. PNP Chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde says Oplan RODY will be implemented nationwide especially in the evenings while NCRPO Chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar says Metro Manila will have “round the clock” or 24 hour police operations.

PNP uses local laws in public places such as QC Ordinance (CO) SP-85 which prohibits drinking of alcohol, CO 2623 banning nudity (which includes “topless” or “half naked”) , CO 26 which penalizes smoking , CO 2301 imposing “discipline hours or curfew”, CO-SP 3730 or the Anti-Barker Law and CO 512 which prohibits concealment of a deadly weapon. Similar local laws are also in effect in Navotas, Las Piñas, Manila, Marikina and San Juan.

However, some of these ordinances were rendered unconstitutional.

For example, the Supreme Court, in its August 8, 2017 En Banc decision in the case of Samahan ng mga Progresibong Kabataan (SPARK), et.al. vs. Quezon City, et.al., docketed as G.R. No. 225442, declared unconstitutional a number of local laws (the Navotas and Manila curfew) citing issues of vagueness, overbreadth and suppression of right to liberty and travel.

In 2012, Congress decriminalized the 1939 anti-poor vagrancy laws, then often used by the police against loiterers, vagrants and “istambays”. It enacted RA 10158 that these people could not be detained except for another crime. Also, Article III, Section 2 of our Constitution guarantees every individual the right to personal liberty and security of homes against unreasonable searches and seizures.

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In May 2016 , or a month before President Duterte assumed office, the police already started rounding up “istambays” in Metro Manila. It eventually took the back seat when then PNP Chief Ronald de la Rosa concentrated on illegal drugs with Oplan TOKHANG and Double Barrel.

Last week, President Duterte warned “istambays” they will be arrested if they continue to loiter in the streets especially in the evening. A “crime prevention measure”, clarifies Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, triggering heated debate in media, both thankful for its effectivity and suspicious as to its legality and methods of implementation.

Do we now consider “istambays” as suspected criminals? Is it a crime to be “istambay”, poor, jobless and lives on day to day subsistence? Will the rich “istambays” be arrested too? What about the issue of personal liberty particularly freedom of movement and travel? Is it now a crime for “mag-kakapitbahay” to hang-out in groups. These are compelling questions today.

Oplan RODY reminds me of Marcos Martial Law’s “sona” in poor urban areas such as in Balic-Balic, Sampaloc where I come from. “Sona” is a midnight to early morning raid of Metrocom operatives on all male residents (young and old) of a compound or a slum area. We were told to go the plaza, basketball court or any open area for “verification” in a controlled environment , where they look for communist and criminals.

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DILG usec Martin Diño has a workable plan of suppressing “riding in tandem killings” in Metro Manila. His solution: put up 1,700 baranggay checkpoints to regularly check passing motorcycle riders (single or in tandem) requiring them to submit ownership documents. . PNP does random checkpoints only in city/municipal roads and criminals elude them by taking baranggay roads.

Diño believes these baranggay checkpoints can help identify these armed criminals and probably capture them by blockading their baranggay roads until the cops arrive.

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