PNP acting chief Nartatez: No such thing as quota arrest

Philippine National Police (PNP) acting chief Police Lieutenant General Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. on Monday said there is no such thing as a quota on arrests in the police organization.

“There's no such thing as quota arrest,” Nartatez said at a press briefing.

Nartatez pointed out that police units are operating based on the intelligence they obtain.

“Our operations not only in the Philippine National Police but also in different law enforcement agencies, including the Armed Forces, paano sa sila nagko-conduct ng (how do they conduct) patrol or combat patrol? It is intel-based,” he added.

Focus crimes

Nartatez pointed out that the PNP’s target is to arrest 100% of wanted persons and reduce the focus crimes to zero.

“How can we say that we're going to kokotahin sila ng (impose a quota) about 100 or what? What we're doing is we have these wanted persons and we should arrest. And where is the quota there or what is the ideal? The ideal is 100%,” he said.

“In the same way, if we have recorded 100 focus crimes in a certain area in a certain period and in a macro-level, what is the action plan of the PNPand the lower units? The ideal one is to maging ang (have) zero focus crimes,” he added.

Focus crimes are offenses considered as serious in nature with sufficient frequency and regularity. These include murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, robbery, theft, and carnapping of vehicles and motorcycles.

Earlier, human rights group Kapatid called on Nartatez to end the supposed quota on arrests.

“Kapatid calls on the new [PNP acting chief Lieutenant General Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr.] to rescind [former PNP chief Police General Nicolas Torre III’s] policy on quota arrests, which only worsen impunity and jail congestion without truly addressing crime,” the group said. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News