Law Enforcement in the Philippines

Law enforcement is a term used to define the act of enforcing the law; and a law

enforcement officer is a government employee who is responsible for the prevention,

investigation, apprehension, or detention of individuals suspected or convicted of

offenses against the criminal laws, including an employee engaged in this activity who is

transferred to a supervisory or administrative position; or serving as a probation or

pretrial services officer (UsLegal.com).

In the Philippines, a country located in Asia, law enforcement has been mainly

entrusted to the main law enforcement group, the Philippine National Police, in

collaboration to other law enforcement agencies like the Natonal Bureau of

Investigation, Bureau of Corrections, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Bureau

of Fire Protection; and the auxiliary groups like the Barangay Tanod, Traffic

Management Groups, Security agencies and the like.

The list of laws in the Philippines is actually good. One of the law on climate

change adaptation (CCA) and disaster risk reduction (DRR) was even mentioned by the

UN special envoy Margareta Washlstrom in 2012 as the best in the world. However,

even if how good the law is, if its enforcement is weak, then the law will be of no use.

Philippine law is one of the best there is, but how about the law enforcement

group that is supposed to enforce it? Can the law enforcement group live up to the

expectation? According to Roque, H. (2010), a human rights lawyer, there is something

wrong with the national police. It is viewed more as a source of livelihood for the

policemen rather than an institution to protect law and order, Roque said one of the

force's biggest problems was corruption. There have been many accounts of
prospective recruits paying bribes to join the service, and paying again to get important

posts with the express intention of using their positions to make money.

The statement of Roque was actually seen during the bus hostage crisis that

occurred last 2010 in Manila, when eight (8) Hong Kong nationals were killed. According

to reporter Chick, K. (2010), the incident exposed how corrupt the law enforcement

agency is. During this crisis situation, the Philippine National Police displayed the lack of

training of the officers who responded to the situation, the lack of equipments and poor

communication problem among the organization. According to the report, the bullets

that were discovered on the victim’s body were also investigated as it was suspected to

have come from the police officers who were supposed to save them.

According to the report of the Center for Police Management and Development in

2005, the police force could not function properly because of the lack budget allocation,

which in turn caused the lack of equipment for the police force to properly enforce the

law, the number of police officers were less than the required number in the society, and

the police offices and lock-up cells were poorly made.

This situation of the police force, tasked to enforce the law, resulted to the poor

law enforcement system of the country. If we try to analyse it, the root cause for the

poor law enforcement in the country is neither the lack of budget, nor the lack of

equipments and force, the real cause of the problem is the corruption in the system and

the lack of cooperation from the Filipino people.

Like what Attorney Roque said, there have been many accounts of recruits

paying bribes just to enter the police force, and their purpose is for gain. If that is the

kind of law enforcement officers that they have, then they cannot expect a good service.
If those unqualified individuals enter the police force through bribery, then what will

happen to the law enforcement system of the country?

Another problem to the law enforcement system, aside from corruption, is the

lack of cooperation from the people. Sewell, E. (2013), stated that Filipino do not care

enough to take a stand against corruption. He further said that Filipinos have no one to

blame but their own apathy. This, I believe, is true. If only the people or the Filipino

people themselves would be more involved in what is happening around them, then the

issue on corruption would have been minimized, and the law enforcement system would

have improved.

The point is, the people themselves should be the first to make a stand to have a

change because they are the most powerful people in a nation; and until the people

could have their stand, only then will there be a change in the system, including law

enforcement.
 References

Ubac, M. (May 4, 2012). UN laud Philippines’ climate change laws ‘world’s best’.
Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/35695/un-lauds-philippines%E2%80%99-climate-
change-laws-%E2%80%98world%E2%80%99s-best%E2%80%99

Law Enforcement Officer Law & Legal Definition. http://definitions.uslegal.com/l/law-

enforcement-officer/

Corruption by Country/ Territory. Retrieved November 27, 2013. http://www.

transparency.org/country#PHL

Chick, K. (August 25, 2010). Philippines hostage crisis exposes police corruption,
ineptitude. Retrieved November 27, 2013. http://www.csmonitor.com/
World/terrorism-security/2010/0825/Philippines-hostage-crisis-exposes-police-
corruption-ineptitude