Two administration solons have slammed Vice President Sara Duterte's claim that increasing police visibility in communities is an outdated measure as far as deterring crime is concerned.

This, after President Marcos--as part of his rules-based approach to crimefighting--ordered the Philippine National Police (PNP) to step up its patrolling activities.

Vice President Duterte mocked the Palace's pulis sa kanto (police at the corner) strategy, and said it reeked of 1970s and 1980s mindset. She reckoned that the government should instead push for modernization of the PNP.

Manila 1st district Rep. Ernesto “Ernix” Dionisio Jr. and Lanao del Sur 1st district Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong didn't take this criticism sitting down during a press conference Thursday, June 26.

“I beg to differ. ‘Yung police visibility is always a deterrent for a crime. Seeing physically a police officer, a law enforcement in the streets is a very strong deterrent to criminals,” Dionisio said.

At the same time, Dionisio said it was wrong to claim the government is neglecting efforts to modernize the PNP. He recounted his recent visit to the PNP Headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City, where officials were shown high-tech upgrades in police response systems.

“Truth be told, we were there yesterday sa Crame. We met with our new PNP Chief Gen. [Nicolas] Torre. Pinakita niya sa amin ‘yung quick response ng ating kapulisan. Meron silang command center sa Crame na namo-monitor from Luzon to Mindanao,” he said.

(He showed us the quick response capabilities of our cops. They have a command center at Crame where they monitor areas from Luzon to Mindanao.)

Dionisio continued: “Nakita namin dun sa monitor na at a single notice na may tumawag, makikita na ‘yung foot patrol na nakikita sa vicinity nung pinangyayarihan ng crime. So it’s not true that walang ginagawang technological advancements. Parehong ginagawa, may technological advancements and at the same time nandyadyan pa rin ‘yung physical presence.”

(We saw on the monitor that, with just a single call, the foot patrol in the vicinity of where the crime occurred could already be seen. So it’s not true that no technological advancements are being made. Both are being done, there are technological advancements, and at the same time, there’s still a physical presence.)

Adiong agreed, and said that the goal of law enforcement was not just to react to crime but to prevent it before it happens.

“Ako naniniwala ako dun sa sinabi ni PNP chief na they should be out there in the streets. Sabi nga it’s a deterrent, tama po, police visibility is a deterrent na mangyayari ang mga krimen,” Adiong said.

(I believe in what the PNP Chief said, that they should be out there in the streets. As was mentioned, it’s a deterrent. That’s right, police visibility is a deterrent to crime happening.)

“The word actually is—the catch word is—prevention. Hindi lang ‘yung actual investigation or running after criminals, but even to prevent a crime to even happen in the first place,” he added.

(It’s not just about the actual investigation or going after criminals, but even about preventing a crime from happening in the first place.)

Adiong explained that police officers are not hired for clerical work, but to protect communities. In the first place, the police is to serve and protect. They should be out there para ma-prevent ‘yung mga nangyayaring krimen and to respond to the call of distress.

(In the first place, the role of the police is to serve and protect. They should be out there to prevent crimes from happening and to respond to calls of distress.)

He also praised the new technology rolled out by the PNP, including real-time monitoring and the use of body cameras linked to a central system.

“In fact, meron na silang mga additional na gadgets… camera attached sa kanilang katawan na naka-link na sya automatic sa Internet. So kung titingnan mo maski saan sila pumunta meron silang IT operation doon sa PNP. Real time nakikita ng headquarters. That’s an improvement,” Adiong said.

(In fact, they now have additional gadgets… body-worn cameras that are automatically linked to the Internet. So wherever they go, there’s an IT operation within the PNP. The headquarters can see everything in real time. That’s an improvement.)