To get rid of cops involved in illegal drugs trade

IN a surprise move meant to show his seriousness to “cleanse” the Philippine National Police (PNP), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin “Benhur” C. Abalos Jr. on Wednesday appealed to all PNP generals and full-fledged colonels to file their “courtesy resignation” from their respective posts.

The DILG chief said he was referring to the 126 star-rank officials led by PNP Chief General Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr. and the nearly 900 PNP colonels who are now occupying positions of major responsibility in the 227,000-strong organization.

In a press conference at Camp Crame, Abalos said he made the decision following consultation with Azurin and other officials.

Although he refused to say if he has already talked with President Marcos Jr. regarding the matter, Abalos said he will create a five-man committee that will study if any of the generals and colonels who will submit their courtesy resignation will be retained or not.

He said that amid the anti-drug gains made by the Marcos Jr. administration over the past six months, it was marred by the involvement of some law enforcement officers in illegal drug activities; hence he made a move to cleanse the police force.

Since July 1 to date, Abalos said that the Marcos government has already seized some P10 billion worth of drugs following the conduct of about 24,000 operations, which led to the arrest of more than 30,000 drug personalities. He said they also recorded minimal deaths from police anti-drug operations during the six-month period.

Meanwhile, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Wednesday expressed his full support for Abalos’ appeal to purge the PNP of ranking officers involved in narcotics.

“Yes,” Remulla said when asked if he agreed to Abalos’ call.

In a press conference, Abalos expressed deep concern over the alleged complicity of PNP officers in the illegal drugs trade.

“Ako ay nananawagan sa lahat ng full colonel hanggang sa general, ako ay umaapela na mag-submit ng courtesy resignation. Alam kong mabibigla kayo pero this is the only way to make a fresh start,” Abalos said.

‘PNP to abide with the Abalos’ call’

The PNP said it will comply with the DILG chief’s appeal for courtesy resignation of top key officials in a bid to address the anti-drug campaign of the Marcos Jr. administration.

According to PNP Public Information Office (PIO) Chief Police Col. Redrico Maranan, the police force will follow any directive from political or executive leaders as they believe it is for the betterment of their organization.

“Kami po sa Pambansang Pulisya ay susunod at tatalima kung anuman po ang desisyon ng ating mga political leaders. Sapagkat alam po namin na lahat ng mga desisyon na ito ay para sa ikabubuti ng aming organisasyon at ng ating bansa,” said Maranan.

The DILG chief clarified that his directive to the PNP was endorsed by Azurin amid Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa’s statement that the infamous “ninja cops” involved in the illegal drug trade had returned.

“Pagkatapos naming pag-aralan ng ilang buwan ang problema natin, lumalabas na malaki ang problema dito sa kapulisan. Lumalabas na meron mga generals, merong mga colonel na sangkot sa droga… All full colonels to generals. We are appealing, the word is appeal. I am appealing for them to submit a courtesy resignation. We got a list and for us this is upon the recommendation of our Chief PNP and other hierarchy of the PNP. This is the only way to cleanse the ranks fast,” said Abalos.

Abalos, however, did not provide a “deadline” for the police officers to submit their resignations.

“It’s a very radical approach pero alam ko magtatagumpay tayo. Inuulit ko kapulisan, huwag kayo mag-alala. For the meantime tuloy-tuloy pa rin ang serbisyo at huwag sila mag-alala, kung sila malinis wala naman problema. Maayos naman ito, iilan lang ito, maniwala kayo, iilan lang ito pero nasa posisyon silang critical. Ang sinumpaan natin sa ating batas when we took our oath of office as public officials in accordance with the Constitution. Tandaan niyo ito ang maglingkod sa bayan,” explained Abalos.

The official particularly cited a drug bust in San Fernando City in Pampanga which led to the confiscation of an estimated P400 million worth of shabu, another major drug operation in Quezon City, and the biggest of them all, a sting in Manila which led to the recovery of nearly a ton of shabu worth P6.7 billion last October.

Abalos said that what broke their hearts was the presence of some “rogue” anti-narcotics officers involved in actual drug operations.

He cited the case of a member of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group (PNP-DEG), a Police Master Sergeant, who was arrested after he sold two kilograms of shabu worth P13.6 million to an undercover agent of the PNP-DEG along Quezon Bridge in Manila in October.

A follow-up operation conducted by the PNP-DEG headed by Brigadier Gen. Narciso D. Domingo Jr. resulted in the arrest of a civilian accomplice of the cop during a buy-bust operation in Ermita, Manila. It also led to the discovery of around 990 kilograms of the so-called “poor man’s cocaine” inside a building on Jose Abad Santos Avenue in Sta. Cruz, Manila.

Several colleagues of the DEG agent have been placed under investigation in the aftermath of the huge drug recovery.

It was followed by a December 6 operation conducted by the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) under Major Gen. Jonnel C. Estomo inside the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Southern District Field Office in Taguig City, which led to the arrest of the PDEA-SDO chief and his two operatives and their civilian cohort.

Recovered during the sting inside the PDEA-SDFO were 1,350 grams of shabu worth P9.2 million.

“Malalim na ang implikasyon sa kapulisan, maraming pulis ang kasangkot. Sa PDEA ay ganun din. Mahirap lumaban sa giyera kung ultimo kakampi mo ang babaril sa’yo kaya kailangan na linisin natin ang hanay natin and we need the complete trust and confidence of the public here,” Abalos said.

Abalos said they needed the help of everybody in this fight as he lamented that some policemen may be risking their lives in going after drug syndicates, not knowing that their superiors are involved in it.

“Maraming kapulisan ang lumalaban, binubuwis ang buhay alang-alang sa droga, pero papaano ka lalaban kung mismong boss mo ang kalaban. This is a very radical approach to the problem but I do believe that we must cleanse our ranks,” he said.

Abalos said PNP generals and colonels who will submit their courtesy resignation should fear nobody if their consciences are clear.

The DILG chief said that the (five-man) committee will be the one to go thru the records of the senior officials even as he supported former PNP chief now Sen. Dela Rosa’s revelation that the “ninja cops” are back.

He did not give any timeframe for the committee to finish its job. However, he said that it is really a “shortcut” in cleansing the police force in accordance with the rule of law.

Abalos did not reveal who will compose the 5-man committee, but he admitted that it already has a precedent, actually the so-called “Alunan Committee,” which purged the police force during the start of the Fidel V. Ramos administration in 1992.

The official likewise admitted that active and retired police officials who have links to illegal drugs could have already penetrated different branches of the government and are themselves finding a way to help syndicates get off the hook thru legal technicalities.

The DILG chief’s move surprised many in Camp Crame and triggered speculations that it will cause demoralization among officials who are honestly doing their job.

A former PNP chief who requested anonymity said that as far as he is concerned, it was an “implied admission” of some policemen’s involvement in illegal drugs. The retired top cop said the committee is also expected to replace the National Adjudication Board, which looks into the records of policemen included in the so-called drug watchlist during the former Duterte administration. By Alfred Dalizon, Hector Lawas, & Zaida Delos Reyes