By Aaron Recuenco
A viral video showing a teacher caught riding a motorcycle without a helmet has sparked anger online, pushing the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to review its social media posts and pull one of its officers from duty.
While he sees nothing wrong with their policy of posting violators on social media, MMDA Chairman Don Artes said they need to clarify if there are data privacy and other human rights violations in their social media rules and regulations.
“There are conflicting opinions—there are those who appreciate it, and those who do not. So we need to review and clear things up on the regulations governing our social media posts,” said Artes.
The incident was triggered by the apprehension of a male teacher who was not wearing a helmet while riding a motorcycle.
The teacher personally asked MMDA Special Operations Group–Task Force for Road Clearing head Gabriel Go not to film his apprehension, but the latter was quoted as saying that his face would be blurred once the video was uploaded.
The video then went viral and drew mixed reactions from netizens on why there is a need to humiliate those who are apprehended — including a teachers’ group that sought Go’s relief.
Last year, Go also went viral for using the same strategy against a policeman.
Artes confirmed that Go was temporarily barred from joining any MMDA operation pending the result of the complaint against him in relation to the case of the teacher.
“He is still an employee and he is not suspended. It’s just that we will not allow him to join operations pending the result of the investigation,” said Artes.
Part of the investigation is consultation with other sectors, especially on the matter of data privacy.
But for Artes, who is a lawyer, he maintained that the posting of videos like that of the teacher’s case needs no consent since the incident happened in a public place.
“As a lawyer and head of the agency, when you are in a public place, it is not subject to consent. It’s a legitimate government operation and we are also using those footages for the protection of our employees,” said Artes.
In the case of the MMDA, he said those videos help the agency in terms of informing the public that it is doing its job and in sending a strong message that you would be in trouble if you violate the law.
“But we will review and consult the Data Privacy Commission,” he added.
