Philippine National Police Chief Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa wants to implement curfew for minors to prevent them from getting involved in crimes. “It has been the source of frustration for the PNP for a long time,” de la Rosa said.
Basing on his experience, Dela Rosa said that drug lords use minors in their activities to take advantage of the fact that children get away likely unlike adults who get punished drastically and are usually fined heavily.
The Juvenile Justice Act of 2006, that Sen. Francis Pangilinan sponsored, states that minors who commit and participate in crimes will not receive any jail sentence for their acts but are to be taken under the custody of the government through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Bato also expressed how the law can be a “source of frustration because it gives protection to juvenile delinquents. De la Rosa recounted his experience as a police chief in Davao City when a drug lord used minors to deliver drugs in exchange for money for playing video games.
“Those kids are being ued for criminal activities. I discovered a drug lord who used to go to an internet cafe to observe kids hooked on video games. When these kids lose, they desperately look for money to continue playing. When he sees the minor frustrated over the lack of money, the drug lord approaches the kid, talks to him then gives the minor P1,000, to deliver a cake. That cake, it turns out is loaded with shabu. These kids become shabu couriers in Davao,” he said.
House Bill (HB) 894 and the HB 7110, two bills enforcing a curfew for minors are in the process of being approved in Congress.
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