Criticisms on the five pillars of criminal justice.

1. Police
Bad points:
o The police force receives a very little portion of the
government income. This observation is based on reports
that some policemen even have to buy their own
handguns as the government dont allocate enough
funds to arm the police. The sidearm is crucial to an
officers ability to efficiently perform his duty in terms of
protecting himself or protecting people.
o Some, if not most, of the vehicles of the policemen are
outdated or are no longer in good condition but
policemen still use them simply because they have no
choice. Instead of donating luxury vehicles (SUVs) to the
bishops, why dont the government use the funds or
donate the cars to the policemen? The need a fast
vehicle not only to chase escaping felons but also to
quickly respond to emergency situations.
o Some policemen are corrupt. This is one of the first
reforms proposed by incoming president Duterte to be
implemented by incoming PNP Chief Dela Rosa.
Elimination of corrupt police generals who may have
been receiving bribes from syndicates and allowing them
to operate.
o Some police officers deny service to the poor. I saw a
report in Bitag, a TV program hosted and produced by
the Tulfo Brothers, where a lady was oppressed and was
continuously harassed by a bodyguard of a Mayor in
Rizal. The lady tried to file a case in the local police
station but never received heard anything back. There
was even an instance where she tried to file a report but
the police denied to even create a report. It was found
that the chief of the police station was only acting upon
the orders of the mayor. Prompting the Provincial Police
Office together with the Regional Police Office to take
over the case.
o Police should also be equipped with Tasers or stun guns.
This is to minimize incidents of death in cases where a

person tries to escape and has no means of employing

deadly weapons.
o Securing police clearance should be issued with less
hassle. When we tried to secure one (for purposes of
drivers license), they required us to secure barangay
clearance, community tax certificate, etc. We ended up
processing renewal of license instead of adding
restriction codes. Besides, with the advancement of
technology, the bureaucracy should be abolished and
records should be kept on a centralized server.
Good Points:
o There are still some police officers who lives to uphold
the duty they have sworn; to serve and protect.
o Incoming PNP Chief appears to be able to execute the
order given to him by the incoming President.
2. Prosecution
Bad points:
o Lawyers at times would interpret the law differently that
provide much confusion to the laymen.
Good points:
o As per experience, the prosecution would do the best of
their ability to help out in your case. As if they were the
ones who suffered.
3. Courts of justice
Bad points:
o As per the Labor case that I have filed against my
previous employer, although the decision of the Labor
Arbiter was not to our favor, the arbiter seemed to have
concentrated only on an evidence presented by the
respondents. It appears that some of our documentary
evidences attached to our position paper was deemed to
have no merit at all. There was also leniency in the part
of the arbiter as the position paper of the respondent was
way past the due date set by the NLRC but the latter still
admitted the position paper. Another lenient act by the
arbiter was the fact that the person who submitted the
position paper had no proper authority to deal with the
matter as the case was not filed against her name. There

was no valid representation as she was not an attorneyat-law.

o Senate, being the court of impeachment in the case of
the late SC Chief Justice Corona, should at least have a
standard in choosing the Senator-judges. The senatorjudges should only be composed of those who qualify to
be a judge on a very critical matter (ie. Impeachment).
Good points:
o No good points observed at the moment.
4. Community
Bad points:
o The spirit of bayanihan no longer exists. As per
observation, people are no longer driven by mere
gratitude. Some if not most would only help each other if
money/wage is involved.
o The democracy that everyone is enjoying is not being
fully enjoyed. In a fully democratic society, everyone is
free to do whatever he wants to do as long as it is lawful.
Unfortunately, a lot of our fellow constituents are
ignorant of the law. For example, when Duterte whistled
after being asked a question by a reporter, it was
presumed by most citizens as a sexual act. Dutertes
defense is that it was a mere exercise of the freedom of
expression. People are trying to deprive him of his right
by saying that it is unbecoming of a president and that
such act should not be exercised in public. In my opinion,
if you would do it in private, where only you and a lady is
present and you catcalled on her, then we might consider
it to be an act of lasciviousness. But it wasnt. It was
aired in national television.
o The people should be more open-minded. Change is
inevitable. In the earlier years, a person having a tattoo
may be considered as a felon or an ex-convict. That he
was incarcerated at some point and ended up having
tattooed inside the prison. There was even a time when a
policy prevents a tattooed person to enter a different
country. Today, tattooing is just an act of expression and
is now socially accepted. But the fact remains, that there

are still people who would judge you of your personality

based on your tattoos.
o Poverty rate is not declining.
Good points:
o Family comes first. Whatever you may have done in the
past, you still have your family behind you. This is
debatable as it may either be a good point or a bad one.
5. Church
Bad points:
o The church interferes with the affairs of the government.
While it is true that there is the so-called separation of
the state and the church, it appears that the culture that
priests are always right seems to haunt us. To the extent
that they would act as if they are the government. The
duty of the church is to imbue us with righteous ways
and guide us into right path with our lives. On several
occasions, the church tries to influence people whom to
vote and whom not to. Not only is the Catholic Church
guilty about this but also the Iglesia Ni Cristo. The INC
provides a sample ballot on each of their congregations.
This, according to them, is an act of unity. In the most
recent elections, it was favorable on my part as they
have endorsed the my presidential and vice-presidential
bet. But clearly, this deprives people of their right to
choose the one that they want.
o As an ex-seminarian, I have a first-hand knowledge of the
corruption that happens in the church. Donations and
offerings are sometimes used to fuel the luxurious
lifestyle of a priest. I would no longer elaborate on the
issue of corruption of the clergy.
o Another observation, although it may be petty, is with
the Holy Communion. When Jesus Christ had his last
supper with his disciples, he took a bread, broke it into
pieces and gave it to his disciples. After the meal, he took
the wine, drank on it and passed it onto his disciples.
However, it is a common practice now the Christians only
receive the body of Christ. Hey! We also need wine!
Good points:

The interpretation of the gospels by the priests

sometimes give a big impact on how we live our daily
lives.