Senator Joel Villanueva commended on Wednesday, May 5, Secretary Silvestre Bello III for turning down the Philippine National Police's (PNP) proposal to require police clearances in labor transactions.
Bello, in a reply to PNP chief General Debold Sinas, said such requirement "will do more harm than good".
"We commend Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and our DOLE family for upholding an ease-of-doing business approach to workers' request for assistance," Villanueva said in a brief statement.
The chairman of the Senate labor committee previously described the PNP proposal as "incredulous", saying it would only result in red tape and delay of services to people, especially those seeking assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
"The request for police clearance lengthens the process and delays the response. The road to DOLE must not pass through a police station," Villanueva reiterated.
"The PNP has a maximum 10-minute response time to 911 and similar distress calls. It should view the workers' request for assistance from DOLE as an SOS that must be rapidly responded to," he pointed out.
Sinas had wanted the DOLE to require national police clearance, claiming it will help the agency "have a much broader information as to the character of an individual."
But labor groups slammed the proposal, which came amid the reported profiling and red-tagging of unionists and activists.
In his letter to Sinas on Tuesday, May 4, Bello cited the opposition from stakeholders and the Duterte administration's ease-of-doing-business policy in government.
He said such requirement also has no legal basis, and might violate labor laws and the Constitution.
"Truly, it is a compassionate policy we should all support and emulate," Villanueva said of Bello's response.