The National Privacy Commission (NPC) Tuesday, ( April 20 ) called the Philippine National Police (PNP) Data Protection Office to look into alleged profiling of Community Pantry organizers and take appropriate measures to prevent any doings of its personnel on the ground that could potentially harm citizens and violate rights.

In a statement, NPC also urged the PNP that should there be a need to collect personal information to maintain peace and order, it must be accomplished with transparency, legitimate purpose, and proportionality.

“We would like to emphasize that collecting personal data must be done fairly and lawfully with respect to the rights of a data subject, including the rights to be informed and object,” said NPC in a statement.

It said that while more people have set up community pantries in the spirit of bayanihan, it has come to their attention that there were concerns over alleged profiling of organizers of these initiatives.

Individuals were purportedly asked to provide personal data including their email address, Facebook account name, family background, among others.

According to NPC, the PNP leadership in the past has acted on unlawful profiling and recognized the importance of protecting the privacy of the citizenry in the performance of their duties.

“Today, we call on again the attention of the PNP Data Protection Office to look into these reports and take appropriate measures to prevent any doings of its personnel on the ground that could potentially harm citizens and violate rights. Should there be a need to collect personal information to maintain peace and order, it must be accomplished with transparency, legitimate purpose, and proportionality,” said NPC Commissioner Raymund Enriquez Liboro.

In times of adversity, NPC said Filipinos have the ability to come together and do extraordinary deeds. We must continue these efforts to build trust within and across communities amid this unprecedented health crisis.