Cops manning ECQ border control points to use body cameras

MANILA – Police personnel deployed in different Metro Manila control points will use body-worn cameras (BWCs) during the implementation of the enhanced community (ECQ) in Metro Manila, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said on Monday.

“Our personnel on the ground have been dealing with a large number of people on a daily basis since Day One of the ECQ on Aug. 6. These body-worn cameras will serve as the constant reminder for them to be courteous at all times and at the same time, their protection against claims and allegations of abuses,” Eleazar said.

Eleazar said BWCs were distributed in various police units of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) in May this year.

On Monday, Eleazar personally supervised the command and control of the use of BWCs of policemen manning and supervising the quarantine control points (QCPS) that were set up at the boundaries of Metro Manila.

The Command Center was at the Camp Crame in Quezon City where technical experts of the PNP are receiving the live video feeds of the BWCs on the ground.

The Supreme Court’s rules on the use of BWCs in serving search and arrest warrants took effect last month.

The PNP took the initiative to getting guidance from the high court on the legal aspect of the use of BWCs.

The PNP procured almost 3,000 BWCs from the Congressional allocation in 2017.

The BWCs were delivered early this year and Eleazar, after his assumption as PNP chief last May, immediately ordered their distribution to various police units, mostly in Metro Manila and other cities and urban areas in the country.