A LAWMAKER on Tuesday pressed the Philippine National Police (PNP) to fast-track its procurement of body-worn cameras (bodycams) after learning that it “would take almost 20 years” for the entire uniformed force to be provided with these devices under its current procurement scheme.

Bicol Saro Party-list Representative Brian Raymund Yamsuan, a former Assistant Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), issued the call to the PNP officials present at Tuesday’s hearing of the House Committee on Public Order and Safety after learning that the PNP has proposed the acquisition of only 2,000 units of bodycams under its proposed budget for 2024.

With a backlog of at least 43,000 bodycams as of this year, Yamsuan said it would take “at least two decades” for the PNP to provide such devices to the entire police force.

“‘Pag inisip natin, 20 years pa bago tayo ma-fill ang backlog,” Yamsuan told PNP officials during the hearing.

The hearing, chaired by Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez, focused on several measures seeking to institutionalize the use by police personnel of body cameras during law enforcement operations and appropriating funds for such purposes.

Yamsuan underscored the importance of body cameras in police operations, as these would protect citizens and police officers from abuse.

“Napakaimportante niyan ngayon especially, hindi lang para sa naging biktima, Biktima rin ang pulis eh, ‘Pag kayo nakasuhan, inakusahan ng mali, kailangan proteksyunan n’yo rin sarili niyo,” Yamsuan told PNP officials during the hearing.

Yamsuan advised the PNP to “crunch its numbers” and maximize the use of its funds to cover the expenses for procuring bodycams.

He said the PNP should change its “mindset” and learn to keep up with technological advances and “other disruptive developments in the Digital Age.”

“You should think about yourselves and enhance the capability of your agency,” Yamsuan told the PNP.

According to PNP Directorate for Logistics Deputy Director Flynn Dongbo, the PNP currently has 2,696 units of body cameras which were procured in 2021.

In a resolution dated June 29, 2021, the Supreme Court (SC) issued its rules requiring police officers to use body-worn cameras while serving search and arrest warrants.

During the hearing, Yamsuan also told the PNP to beef up its National Management and Monitoring Center, which serves as the unified data hub of the body camera system.

The PNP’s Information Technology Management Service will man the monitoring center, complemented by its 17 Regional Monitoring Centers and 81 Provincial Monitoring Centers (PMCs).