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Bella Cariaso - The Philippine Star
June 19, 2025 | 12:00am
Members of the Manila Police District (MPD) prepare for deployment at their headquarters in Ermita, Manila on January 3, 2025.
STAR / Ryan Baldemor
MANILA, Philippines — Personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) are only allowed outside school premises in the government’s campaign against bullying, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said yesterday.
“They are only allowed outside to monitor the perimeter. If there are bullying incidents inside the schools, (fights) happen outside so we need the police there,” Angara said in an interview.
PNP chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III has said that incidents of bullying may now be reported through the 911 emergency hotline.
This move comes amid intensified efforts to address bullying in schools following international reports branding the Philippines as the “bullying capital of the world.”
PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo agrees with Angara, saying that police officers will not enter educational institutions unless there is a request for police assistance from school officials.
Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte agrees to letting the PNP stay outside school premises.
“Their presence inside the school can actually have a detrimental effect and cause undue panic for the children. We are supportive if they are outside the schools,” Belmonte said.
She added that Quezon City has instituted its own campaign against bullying.
“We are going to have a values formation program for parents. Here, we encourage them to monitor and teach their children because we really need the parents’ intervention to inculcate values to the children, so that’s something that’s going to be new here in Quezon City,” Belmonte said. — Emmanuel Tupas
