A new bill filed by Makabayan lawmakers on Thursday seeks to repeal an earlier law that gave the Philippine National Police (PNP) and its Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) powers to issue subpoenas.
Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co, ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio and Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Sarah Elago filed House Bill No. 5722, which seeks to repeal Republic Act (RA) No. 10973.
RA 10973, signed in 2018 by former President Rodrigo Duterte, gave PNP’s chief and CIDG’s director and deputy director the power to issue subpoena and subpoena duces tecum to ease their investigations.
A subpoena duces tecum is a legal order that compels a respondent to produce a document.
PNP-CIDG earlier vowed not to “abuse” the law.
But the recent slew of subpoenas filed by the CIDG against youth leaders shows such powers now serve “political ends rather than legitimate law enforcement objectives,” Makabayan lawmakers said in the bill’s explanatory note.
RELATED: USC Chair Buenaflor subpoenaed by PNP for organizing anti-corruption protests — OSR
“These powers, ostensibly intended to aid criminal investigation, have instead become instruments of state repression wielded against activists, organizers, and ordinary citizens who dare to question government wrongdoing,” the lawmakers said.
They cited as examples of PNP-CIDG’s harassment the subpoenas issued to student leaders Joaquin Buenaflor of UP Diliman, Aldrin Kitsune of DLSU-CSB, and Jacob Baluyot and Tiffany Brillante of PUP for participating in the Sept. 21 anti-corruption protests.
“The PNP and CIDG also fail to recognize that these mass mobilizations were well within the constitutionally enshrined rights of the youth, students, and civil society organizations to protest against the widespread corruption, misuse of public funds, and lack of transparency and accountability in government,” they said.
