MANILA, Philippines — An official of the Philippine National Police (PNP) yesterday apologized for the perceived profiling and red-tagging of organizers of community pantries by police personnel.
Brig. Gen. Vincent Calanoga, chief of the PNP’s human rights affairs office, told lawmakers during the hearing of the House rights committee that the PNP has no policy or intention to profile Ana Patricia Non and other pantry organizers.
“The PNP apologizes to those who were affected by any news or post on social media that they did not like. Incidents like these, which were called profiling or red-tagging, are not covered by the policy of the PNP. These actions have been accorded due action so it will not be repeated,” Calanoga said in Filipino.
It was the first time that a top PNP official apologized for the reported profiling, which caused fear among pantry organizers.
Calanoga said that police officers who questioned the pantry organizers were merely doing their duty of monitoring the situation in their areas of responsibility.
Earlier, the Quezon City Police District issued a similar apology for sharing a social media post which linked community pantries to the communist movement. The post by Peace Philippines, an organization claiming to advocate peace, labeled community pantries as fronts of the communists to recruit members. The QCPD took down the post after drawing flak on social media.
Meanwhile, members of the Makabayan bloc filed a resolution honoring Non and other community pantry organizers.
House Resolution 1763 said Non’s pantry inspired other people and rekindled the spirit of bayanihan and solidarity among Filipinos, especially during these difficult times.
Over 6,000 pantries have sprouted across the country since Non first established the same along Maginhawa street in Diliman, Quezon City.
“Non and other community pantry organizers deserve commendation and recognition for their trailblazing and noble efforts to ease the hunger and sufferings of Filipinos caused by the pandemic,” the resolution read.