Short on details, QCPD says reported harassment of UP athletes 'untrue'
MANILA, Philippines — Though it provided no details on what actually happened, the Quezon City Police District denied claims on social media of harassment by cops of several student-athletes from the University of the Philippines who were on their way to competitions.
The PNP called the claim "fake news" — a misnomer that initially meant disinformation and misinformation but that has been increasingly used by government agencies and officials to mean unflattering news.
"Captain Wilfredo Desierto, the Officer-in-Charge of the [UP Diliman] Police Department, declared the reported incident to be untrue," the QCPD wrote in a statement issued through its public information office. The statement said nothing else about the incident besides its being "untrue." It is unclear if this means that the incident never happened that way, or at all.
Philstar.com pressed Police Maj. Wennie Cale of the QCPD Public Information Office for more details but Cale did not respond after several attempts. The QCPD spokesperson left multiple messages on "seen" and rejected phone calls.
To recall, the UP College of Human Kinetics issued a statement on its official page saying "groups of student-athletes from the University of the Philippines were reportedly stopped by police officers during travel from their respective competitions."
"These athletes were traveling in official University-marked vehicles, and were asked if such vehicles were being used to transport protesters to the walkout organized by different university student councils," the post read.
"Given the history of red-tagging of students and state attacks under these administrations, these incidents are points of concern, especially as the UP community takes a stand against potential threats to our democracy. As bastion of activism, we continue to uphold our mandate to challenge the status quo that renders us disenfranchised of our rights."
In the wake of the incident, the student council also opened a security incident report form for students to forward any similar incidents.
Based on a supposed validation report issued by the Anonas Police Station and quoted by the QCPD in its statement sent to reporters earlier, two Police Non-Commissioned Officers were immediately dispatched to check on the matter and to coordinate with UP Diliman Police Department.
In the same statement, Police Brig. Gen. Remus Medina, district director, even reminded the public to "always verify the source of information on social media, check its credibility, and establish the accuracy and truthfulness of the information it conveys before sharing the same."
He even said that posting fake articles or misinformation is punishable under Republic Act No. 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
“While social media can serve as a perfect avenue to exercise freedom of speech and expression, there is attached accountability given that we are living in an era of fake news and misinformation. As the famous slogan goes think before you click," Medina added.
Sought for comment, Quezon City People's Law Enforcement Board executive director Ralph Calinisan reminded residents in the city, particularly the students involved, that PLEB is "open to hear out any complaint for abusive behavior against members of the police."
"Should this be true, we pledge that we will not tolerate any form of harassment against UP students, or any ordinary person for that matter. We will ensure that the police remains true to their pledge to serve and protect the citizenry," he told Philstar.com in a text message.
- Latest
- Trending
