The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday said it supports the lowering of the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 12 from 15 years old.

“The PNP supporting the lowering of the age of criminal responsibility... We’re thinking 12 years old,” PNP spokesperson P/Col. Allen Rae Co said at a briefing at the Palace on Tuesday, June 22.

He added that the proposal was based on an assessment of the increase in cases involving children in conflict with the law (CICL).

“Medyo nagkakaproblema na tayo. We studied the data… medyo tumataas ‘yung involved na children in conflict with the law,” he said.

This comes after the recent school shooting incident in Tacloban City that left three people dead and 20 others injured.

The incident has renewed discussions among policymakers on whether to amend existing laws on juvenile justice, including proposals to allow younger individuals to be held criminally liable for serious offenses.

Among those who have pushed for similar measures is Senator Robin Padilla, who renewed his push for a bill seeking to lower the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 10 years old.