PNP purge panel starts work
THE 5-MAN Advisory Group formed by President Bongbong Marcos to purge the Philippine National Police of its senior officers with drug links on Monday began their grueling task of cleaning the top leadership of the 227,000-strong force, the Journal Group learned.
According to PNP chief, General Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr., he already met with the four members of the advisory group to discuss the house rules to be used in evaluating and assessing the more than 900 3rd Level PNP Officers who tendered their courtesy resignations to PBBM last January.
Apart from Gen. Azurin, the other members of the group are retired General-turned Baguio City Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong, retired Police Gen. Isagani R. Nerez, former Defense Secretary and lawyer Gilberto ‘Gibo’ C. Teodoro and retired Court of Appeals Associate Justice Melchor Q. Sadang.
The President earlier rejected the courtesy resignation of Gen. Azurin, the 28th PNP chief and the 1st to be designated as the country’s top cop by PBBM in August last year and appointed him to the 5-Man committee since the latter knows who really should be in, who should be out in the organization.
“When the President said that i would be part of the advisory group, practically he cleared me kasi definitely hindi ako magiging part kung hindi ako cleared,” he said.
According to the official, part of their discussion before he met the press is “how we intend to finish the job in less than three months, dapat kasi mas mabilis.”
According to the top cop, the other members of the Advisory Group have been provided with data regarding those who filed their courtesy resignations following an appeal from Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin ‘Benhur’ C. Abalos Jr.
The PNP chief said that since he is a member of the advisory group, he deemed it wise to make the working draft for comment of the rest of the council.
Gen. Azurin said the data provided to the group not only those coming from intelligence agencies but also cases filed against the officers when they were operating in the war on drugs specifically during the previous Duterte administration.
