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SWEEPING INDICTMENT

September 19, 2024 Alfred P. Dalizon 131 views

RETIRED Army general-turned- Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) vice president for security Raul Villanueva made an “irresponsible statement and a sweeping indictment” when he claimed that an ex-Philippine National Police chief received “monthly payola” from dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a Senate inquiry, former top cops told the Journal Group on Wednesday.

Villanueva claimed that a former PNP chief allegedly received a bribe to help Guo and her siblings escape the country despite being under an immigration lookout bulletin in last Tuesday’s resumption of the Senate investigation into Guo’s escape and recapture.

However, his words caught the ire of the police generals, all graduates of the Philippine Military Academy who commanded the PNP since its establishment in 1991. Since 1991, there are already a total of 30 PNP chiefs, the 1st being the late Gen. Cesar P. Nazareno and the 30th is the incumbent PNP chief, Gen. Rommel Francisco D. Marbil.

Nazareno became PNP chief during the Corazon Aquino presidency. After him, there were a total of four PNP chiefs during the Fidel V. Ramos administration, followed by three during the short-lived Joseph Estrada presidency, seven during the 9-year Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo administration, five during the Benigno Aquino III presidency; seven during the Rodrigo R. Duterte administration; and three so far under the administration of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

“That is the sweeping indictment of former PNP chiefs and their families and loved ones. Collateral damage ang families naming dito. Sabi nga ng anak ko sa akin after hearing Villanueva’s words. Dad, do you know this former PNP chief. I told him, it’s not me son. I have long retired since Alice Guo became a farm girl,” said retired Gen. Arturo C. Lomibao, the 12th PNP chief during the Macapagal-Arroyo administration.

Now a member of the PNP Council of Elders, retired Gen. Lomibao of PMA “Masigasig” Class of 1992 said he wants to speak in behalf of other former PNP chiefs who have been affected by Villanueva’s revelations.

“Sobra naman tong si Villanueva when he made that irresponsible statement. Unang-una, hindi naman intelligence report yun kundi what we call ‘Marites in,” (latest gossip in town) information lang pero bakit niya sinabi. If you say intelligence report, ibig sabihin me konting katotohanan na yan. Pero kung ‘Marites’ lang, hindi dapat sinabi yun unless me evidence siya,” Lomibao, a former PNP Director for Intelligence said.

The former PNP chief also asked Villanueva to prove his claim.

“You better put up or shut up. Just present evidence, otherwise you shut up, kasi buong PNP orgnaization, both active and retired aangal, sa yo. Pati families nila eh collateral damage dito dahil sa irresponsible statement mo which for me is not an intelligence report, just a plain ‘Marites,'”he said.

Retired Gen. Lomibao also maintained that all information being sent to the police and the military are also subject to thorough validation, not for full dissemination to the public.

“Sabihin nating me konting katotohahan pero unless validated, wala yun. Kumbaga sa category classification ng reports, we have A-1 reports which are completely reliable and confirmed by other sources, meaning the highest classification of intel reports. Pero meron ding F-6 or unrealiable reports, meaning nobody is confirming it. Pang-Marites lang,” he said.

The former PNP chief said Villanueva’s word really has put a “cloud of doubt” on former PNP chiefs.

“Coming from no less than a former AFP intelligence official, that’s not an intelligence report, just a plain ‘Marites,” he said of Villanueva, a member of PMA Class 1990 who used to be a military attache in Israel.

“Kaya nga ang sinasabi ko eh you put up or shut up. Buti kung ordinaryong tao lang ang tinutukoy mo pero hepe ng buong kapulisan mga yan. Parang si Espenido (Lieutenant Colonel Jovie Espenido) lang na grabe din ang ginawa, Nakasuot siya ng uniporme nung sabihin niya na biggest organized crime syndicate ang PNP. Ang narinig ko lang na nagsabi nun is the late journalist Teddy Boy Locsin. Pero itong si Espenido, dapat nagtanggal muna siya ng uniporme nung ginawa niya yun,” he said.

Former Senator Panfilo Lacson, a former PNP chief during the Estrada administration, also issued a statement on the matter.

“Considering the extent of Guo Hua Ping a.k.a. Alice Guo’s POGO operations and her and her group’s established influence and connections, it is not surprising anymore if rogue policemen and other government officials were receiving regular payolas and some extras for assisting in the escape of Guo, as already pointed out by no less than President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.,” said Lacson.

“But to include a former chief of the Philippine National Police – if intelligence reports were credible as exposed by the Pagcor official – is not only alarming but reprehensible.

“All that being said, let me reiterate my appeal to our intelligence and investigation agencies to leave no stone unturned to reach the logical conclusion by filing criminal charges and having all those involved convicted and given the commensurate jail terms that they deserve,” the former senator said.

The PAGCOR official on Tuesday claimed that a former PNP chief allegedly received a bribe to help Guo and her siblings flee the country.

Villanueva said they gathered information that a former PNP chief allegedly received bribery.

“Di ko lang alam ‘yong sa exact amount including PNP officials. I cannot confirm because I’m outside of the loop, lately. And we’re busy right now helping the law enforcement agencies running after the illegal POGOs in the countryside or in the provinces,” he said.

“Hindi PNP unit but personalities…I think it was mentioned that it was a former chief of PNP,” he added.

Villanueva however could not confirm the information of Senator Risa Hontiveros on the kind of assistance the PNP personnel purportedly provided to Guo.

“I don’t know kung anong exact aid ang sinupport but hindi pa naconfirm ‘yan kung nagbigay, nabigyan o tinanggap or may witnesses. ‘Yon lang po ang naririnig namin sa intelligence community.

I’m out of the loop lately, di ko rin ma-confirm,” he said.

Villanueva added that he does not know the name “except there were some rumors in the intelligence community that it was a former chief of PNP.”

POGOs or Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators began operating in the Philippines in 2003 but it was only since 2016 or during the start of the Duterte presidency that they were regulated and their industry flourished and generated significant revenues for the government.

In October 2023, POGOs which were renamed as Internet Gaming Licensees by the PAGCOR continued to offer online gambling services to markets outside the country, with a significant portion catering to the Chinese market.

However, they became infamously linked to various crimes including human trafficking, prostitution, money-laundering, tax evasion, drugs, murder, kidnappings-for-ransom and torture.

In his 3rd State-of-the-Nation-Address last July 22, President Marcos Jr. ordered the complete ban on POGOs and instructed PAGCOR to cease POGO operations by the end of 2024.

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