PNP mum on cops wearing ‘touch of red’ in Davao rally
Members of the Davao City police securing a political rally led by President Marcos in Carmen, Davao del Norte on Saturday were ordered to wear civilian clothes with a “touch of red,” according to a Philippine National Police regional memorandum dated Feb. 14 that later came out on social media.
Marcos was there to drum up public support for senatorial candidates of the administration coalition party, Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas. Based on the PNP directive, 55 police personnel from the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) were to be deployed to secure the event. They were instructed not to carry firearms and to wear civilian clothes with shades of red.
In a statement on Saturday night, DCPO acting director Col. Hansel Marantan did not deny the existence of the memo which he called a leaked “internal” document that was “unauthorized” for circulation. He said the DCPO remains “apolitical and nonpartisan” and called on the public to refrain from “spreading misinformation or speculation.”
‘Standard security measure’
“We emphasize that this deployment is a standard security measure aimed solely at ensuring the security and safety of the President, the event venue, and the public,” Marantan stressed, although he did not explain why the police officers were ordered to wear clothes with a shade of red or why they had to be unarmed.
The memo drew flak from some social media users who said it raised doubts about the PNP’s ability to stay politically neutral ahead of the May national and local elections.
Before Marantan released his statement, Israelito Torreon, lawyer of Kingdom of Jesus Christ sect leader Apollo Quiboloy, posted a copy of the PNP memo on Facebook.
“Read Paragraph 4. ‘All detailed PNP Personnel must wear civilian attire with touch of red (without firearms) xxx’ What this means is the government is turning the police into rall[iers]. What will they do if there’s trouble? Punch people?” Torreon commented.
Red was the campaign color of Mr. Marcos in his 2022 run for presidency. His running mate and now estranged ally, Vice President Sara Duterte, adopted the color green.
Broken alliance
The once formidable political alliance which ran on a platform of unity has since split up due to a series of rifts that led to Duterte’s resignation from the Cabinet last year.
On Feb. 5, she was impeached by the House of Representatives for alleged offenses, including graft and corruption and plotting to assassinate the President, based on her online rant in November last year.
On Feb. 13, the National Bureau of Investigation recommended the filing against Duterte of charges of inciting to sedition and grave threats after she threatened the President, first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez in that online press conference on Nov. 23.
