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PTFoMS probes threats by cop vs Koronadal radioman

By Richelyn Gubalani

June 24, 2020, 5:39 pm

GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) has launched an investigation into the “disturbing” threats allegedly issued by a police officer from the Police Regional Office (PRO-12) to a radio reporter in Koronadal City during the coverage of an illegal drug operation on Tuesday.

Undersecretary Joel Egco, PTFoMS chief, said Wednesday they received a report that a still unnamed police officer reportedly threatened to include without proper basis Bombo Radyo-Koronadal reporter Bryan Belotindos and his family in the government’s drug watchlist.

He said the incident happened while Belotindos and several other media workers were covering the aftermath of a buy-bust operation along the national highway in Barangay Carpenter Hill past 8 a.m.

The involved police official, who was under the PRO-12’s Regional Police Drug Enforcement Unit (RPDEU), was supposedly irked by the live video coverage via Facebook made by the reporter and the radio station.

But Egco said there was nothing wrong with the reporter’s coverage if it happened, as reported after the police operation has already concluded.

“It was wrong to threaten the reporter with that (inclusion in the drug watchlist). We will get into the bottom of this,” he said in a radio interview.

Belotindos said that during the station’s radio program Bombohanay Bigtime on Wednesday, an operative from the RPDEU-12 initially approached and stopped him from doing the Facebook live as the operation was reportedly still ongoing.

He said he was then posted 45 meters away from the site and saw that the operation was already finished.

A colleague from another media outfit was actually taking pictures of the actual scene at that time, he said.

Belotindos said he was later summoned by a “commander” of the operating unit and directed to delete the footages and pictures he had taken as it might reportedly compromise the identity of the operatives.

Surrounded by five operatives, Belotindos said he obliged but was later told by one of the officers that they will include him and his family in the drug watchlist “if you act like that”.

“He actually repeated that to me three times. That was really disturbing for me and my family,” he said.

Belotindos, who was a member of the South Cotabato police press corps, said he was not familiar with the police officer who threatened him as the latter was reportedly assigned at the PRO-12.

Egco said his staff has instructed Belotindos and the radio station, through its manager Jevlyn Endaya, to have the incident properly reported and documented with the local police and their office.

He said they will investigate what really happened during the incident and identify the involved police personnel.

The official said they will accord those accused with due process and would get their side before making the appropriate action.

“We will not tolerate this. If it comes out that there were indeed lapses and the involved personnel abused their mandate, rest assured that no one is above the law,” he said. (PNA)

 

 

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