Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said personnel from his office had a confrontation with personnel from the Taguig City government who had questioned what they were doing in the city while they were flying a drone to take photos on Friday.
The Taguig City government said the incident arose from a misunderstanding during a routine verification by a Public Order and Safety Office (POSO) roving team and was not intended to interfere with the Ombudsman’s activities.
Remulla mentioned the incident at his regular radio show on DZRH on Saturday, saying the Taguig personnel were trying to stop their activities even if they had introduced themselves as coming from the Office of the Ombudsman.
“Paliliparin nila yung drone para kumuha ng picture. Ayaw silang pagalawin,” Remulla said.
He said the Ombudsman personnel reported the matter to the police.
He also said there was no need for the confrontation to have happened, saying he considers the Taguig city administrator his friend.
He warned that there could be consequences.
“Baka manganak iyan ng obstruction of justice,” he said.
The Office of the Ombudsman is conducting a fact-finding probe into alleged illegal reclamation and infrastructure activities in Taguig.
In a statement, the Taguig City government said it respects the Office of the Ombudsman’s mandate and was not stopping its actions.
It said the POSO team was only doing its job to verify the activities being carried out in the city.
“The City wishes to clarify that the POSO personnel had no intention of interfering with, or preventing, the Office of the Ombudsman from carrying out its official functions. Their actions were undertaken in the course of their regular public safety and enforcement duties and were prompted by the need to verify the identity and purpose of individuals who, at the time, were in civilian clothes, using an unmarked vehicle parked along a bike lane, and operating a drone in a public area,” it said.
It said the POSO team went to check after it spotted an unmarked black pickup parked along the bike lane of C6 Road in Barangay Sta. Ana, as well as individuals in civilian clothes operating a drone.
When the individuals with the drone said they were from the Office of the Ombudsman, the POSO team asked for identification. An individual who identified himself as a police major also asked for identification from the POSO team leader.
The Taguig City government said that during this exchange, the police major reached for the POSO team leader’s ID, and the POSO personnel responded by moving his hand away.
It said the POSO team was in uniform and using a marked vehicle. The POSO team reported the incident to its command base, and police personnel were deployed to the area.
After the Ombudsman team’s activities were clarified, the POSO team left.
But the Philippine National Police’s Regional Mobile Force personnel followed them due to reports that the situation became tense, and the POSO personnel returned to the area to apologize.
The two groups went to the Ususan Police Substation to have the incident recorded in the police blotter.
The matter was resolved peacefully, the city government said.
“The City recognizes that the circumstances understandably led to a misunderstanding. We regret that the situation became tense and are grateful that it was ultimately resolved peacefully and without further incident,” it said.
It also said it is committed to extending courtesy, cooperation, and assistance to government officers carrying out their duties.