Quezon City Police District (QCPD) director Brig. Gen. Remus Medina said that his Civil Disturbance Management (CDM) contingents who were deployed during the canvassing of votes and proclamation of the new president and vice-president of the country last May 25 exercised maximum tolerance in dealing with protesters.
“As trained and directed, the QCPD personnel always observe maximum tolerance in dealing with protesters, provided that the rule of law will prevail should the latter exhibit unruly behaviour,” Medina said.
The QCPD said on Friday that around 200 individuals gathered at the Commission on Human Rights premises and marched towards the House of Representatives in Quezon City, where the counting of votes and proclamation of the new president, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., and new vice-president, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, took place.
The protest led to a brief scuffle between the CDM and the group. The cops used a water cannon to pacify the rallyists.
Police said that the use of the water cannon is the best way to calm down the protesters who became violent, injuring CDM personnel and destroying some government-owned equipment.
The QCPD earlier announced that it allowed the rallyists to conduct their protest against the canvassing and proclamation of the winners while maintaining the normal flow along Commonwealth Avenue, the road leading to the House of Representatives.
The members of the National Board of Canvassers were able to arrive on time at the venue to fulfil their duties.
Meanwhile, Lt. Gen. Vicente Danao Jr., Philippine National Police (PNP) officer-in-charge, called on the entire police force to remain united and act with professionalism when it comes to dealing with similar incidents in the future.
“We will always allow them to have their peaceful assembly in the so-called freedom parks, and with permits from the local government unit. However, we have to prevent them even moving an inch outside of these authorized rally zones, those who will go overboard in their actions and march outside freedom parks have to face the rule of law, as we try to keep peace and order always,” Danao added.
The QCPD said that it had deployed a total of 4,132 policemen during the national and local elections while over 3,000 personnel from different agencies served as an augmentation force during the presidential and vice-presidential canvassing of votes.