MANILA, Philippines – Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President and Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio “Ambo” David reminded the police of their sworn duty to enforce the law, during the requiem Mass for Jerhode Jemboy Baltazar, the 17-year-old teenager slain by cops.

“Mga kapatid na pulis, hindi kayo ang batas. Mga alagad lamang kayo ng batas. Hindi kayo inatasan, binihisan ng uniporme, inarmasan, at binabayaran mula sa buwis ng bayan para pumatay, kun’di para magsilbi bilang aming tagapagtanggol, tagapag-ingat, at tagapagligtas ng bayan ng inyong pinaglilingkuran,” the bishop said during his homily on Wednesday, August 16.

(Our dear cops, you are not the law. You are mere enforcers of the law. You were not ordered, given uniforms, armed, and being paid from the country’s taxes just to kill people, but rather serve as our protector and savior of the country you are serving.)

Two weeks after he was killed by cops from Navotas City, Jemboy was laid to his final resting place in La Loma Cemetery on Wednesday. The teenager was killed by cops when he and his friend were cleaning their boat in the river nearby their home.

Hundreds of people, including Jemboy’s family and friends, were present during the Mass and the burial. Families of drug war victims also paid their last respects to the teenager, and over 10 priests also helped in the Mass.

Even though some of Navotas City police, including their relieved chief Colonel Allan Umipig, were present at the church, Bishop David did not falter in reprimanding the police over their human rights violations. The Caloocan bishop also admonished the cops for their mistaken identity narrative, which the police used an excuse in Jemboy’s case.

“Paano mo masasabing na-identify mo siya kung mistaken ka pala? At dahil dito, napatay mo siya. Oops, sorry ha. Ganun na lang po ba ‘yon, sir? Matapos mong matuldukan ang isang buhay?” the CBCP president asked. “Kahit ipalagay pa natin na hindi mistakenly, kun’di correctly identified ang suspect, dapat ba siyang barilin ng alagad ng batas kung hindi naman siya nanlaban o handa naman itong sumuko?”

(How can you say you identified a person when you were mistaken? And because of this, you killed a person. Oops, I’m sorry. Is it that simple, sir? After you took a life? Even assuming that you correctly identified a suspect, should a law enforcer shoot him/her indiscriminately even though s/he did not fight back or was willing to surrender?)

Bishop David, 64, is known as a defender of drug war victims. The CBCP president’s diocese, Caloocan, was among the hotspots of killings at the height of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war. And during those times, the bishop did not hesitate to stand up and call out police abuses – he even protected the witnesses in the killing of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos.

Whatever happened to probes?

In his homily, Bishop David also asked about the status of the investigation into the killings: “Question, ilang libong DUI ang talagang naimbestigahan na? If DIU means death under investigation, gusto naming malaman, ano’ng resulta ng investigation after so many years?”

(Question, how may DUI were the authorities really able to probe? If DUI means death under investigation, we want to know, what is the result of the probe after so many years?)

The CBCP president also noted that what happened to Jemboy was murder, and not reckless imprudence resulting to homicide. The six cops tagged in Jemboy’s killing – Police Executive Master Sergeant Roberto Balais Jr., Police Staff Sergeant (PSSg) Antonio Bugayong, PSSg Gerry Maliban, PSSg Nikko Pines Esquillon, Police Corporal Edmark Jake Blanco, and Patrolman Benedict Mangada – face a reckless imprudence resulting to homicide complaint.

David also hit the police for not using the body cameras, which are required to be worn during operations to help determine accountability.

“Mali ang barilin ang taong walang armas at hindi lumalaban. Mali na iwan siyang nakalubog sa tubig gayong alam na ito’y tinamaan. Mali na magsuot sila ng body cam na hindi naman umuubra (It’s bad to kill a person who is unarmed and does not fight back. It’s bad to leave a person submerged in the water even though you know he’s been shot. It’s bad to wear a body cam that isn’t running.),” the bishop added.

The police later revealed that the body-worn camera used by cops during the operation where Jemboy was killed was turned off, which eliminated a potential source of evidence that can be used for the probe. – With a report from Marjorie delos Reyes/ Rappler.com

Marjorie delos Reyes, a Rappler intern, is a Development Communication student from UP Los Baños. Learn more about Rappler’s internship program here.