‘Treat hazing as organized crime’

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March 9, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — After the death of another student in a fraternity initiation rite, Senior Citizens party-list Rep. Rodolfo Ordanes is urging the government to treat hazing as an organized crime.

Ordanes said grandparents and parents consider hazing not only as a heinous crime, but also an organized felony.

“The Philippine National Police (PNP) and National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) should treat hazing cases as organized crimes because they are perpetrated in methodical and organized ways. Hazing is not a mere murder committed by people. Every incident is committed by organized groups with well-defined hierarchy, roles and financial capacity and resources,” Ordanes stressed.

He said he is enraged at the loss of the life of yet another  college student, referring to Mark Kenneth Alcedo, a 19-year-old maritime student at the Philippine Nautical and Technological Colleges in Dasmariñas City, who died following initiation rites of  the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity.

“I offer my deepest condolences to (his) grandparents and parents, and my sympathies to his fellow neophytes who survived the torture inflicted upon them by their supposed brothers. We deeply sympathize with the family,” said Ordanes, a member of the House committee on public order and safety and vice chairman of the committee on senior citizens.

Ordanes said the “anger of senior citizens like us continues against the torture of grandchildren in hazing.”

“As member of the House committee on public order and safety, I am calling on the PNP, NBI and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to treat hazing as organized crime,” he added.

According to Ordanes, if his recommendation is followed, then fraternities that carry out hazing should be treated as criminal syndicates.

“This Tau Gamma Phi fraternity has been involved in too many hazing incidents. They should have been treated as a criminal syndicate a long time ago,” he said.

Ordanes suggested that the Securities and Exchange Commission “immediately suspend or revoke the registration of Tau Gamma Phi as a non-profit association.”

He recommended that fraternities and their chapters register with the DILG as well as with the city and town governments.

Ordanes said barangays, cities, towns and the DILG are grossly negligent because they do not have registries and databases of fraternities, even if these groups are required to register their organization in areas where they operate.

“We are not surprised because many barangay officials and personnel are members of fraternities. There are also police officers who are fraternity members,” Ordanes noted.

He said school administrators and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) should also be held accountable.

“Many schools evade liability and accountability by not recognizing fraternities among their non-academic organizations. The CHED does not assume administrative responsibility over school-based fraternities that are not registered, recognized or accredited by colleges and universities. These horrendous behaviors are institutional cowardice. Yes, they are coward,” Ordanes said.