PNP attests to stricter police screening

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

THE PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) told senators on Wednesday that it has already implemented a more thorough screening and testing of men and women entering the police force, as doubts had been cast on the criminal tendencies of Navotas City police officers who shot and killed a teenager by mistake.

At a Senate hearing investigating the killing of 17-year-old teen Jerhode “Jemboy” Baltazar, Colonel Maria Leonora C. Camara, PNP Recruitment and Selection Service Unit chief, said that since 2019 the PNP added personality and temperament tests for aspiring police officers and set a limit on the number of times it can be taken.

“Individuals can now only take the PNPs screening process three times and will be barred from taking it again if they fail to pass,” she said. “We also have a database of all individuals who failed and passed these background tests.”

But during the same hearing, Senator Ronald M. dela Rosa asked the six Navotas policemen who shot and killed the teenager last Aug. 2 whether or not they were subjected to the updated screening process and none of them said they did.

Senator Rafael “Raffy” T. Tulfo earlier called on police to change the neuropsychiatric exams for law enforcers, saying it does not effectively measure a person’s criminal tendencies.

He said police officers often pass the tests by memorizing the answers after multiple tries.