MANILA — Incoming Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Oscar Albayalde has reiterated that there will be no let-up in the government’s crackdown on illegal drugs.
In a chance interview with reporters Wednesday, Albayalde said he will continue to prioritize the continuity of the PNP’s programs, particularly on the war against illegal drugs and reforms in the organization.
“Continuity is of utmost importance for what has already been done and what is being done by the PNP — our campaign against illegal drugs, Oplan Double Barrel, Oplan Tokhang. All these will continue because we have all seen their effect on our peace and order, not only in the National Capital Region but the entire country,” Albayalde said.
He also said he would rid the police force of scalawags, as directed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte and Department of the Interior and Local Government Officer-in-Charge Eduardo Año.
“Our internal discipline within the organization… As far as I can tell, there are only a few scalawags in uniform. We really need to weed them out to cleanse our ranks and change, transform the PNP,” he added.
Albayalde, who is currently National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Director, said he will expedite the processing of pending cases of wayward policemen.
Since he began his stint in the NCRPO on July 1, 2016, 279 police officers have been dismissed, 99 have been demoted, 825 have been suspended, and 365 have been reassigned to areas outside the NCR.
These include the so called “ninja cops” who would come and go in their places of assignment. They have since been reassigned to different areas in Mindanao.
Albayalde said the NCRPO has 96 policemen on its Counter-Intelligence (CI) watch list, 77 of whom are suspected of being involved in illegal drugs.
“All these are still allegations. We need to deliberate, adjudicate and evaluate these thoroughly to ensure due process for these (policemen) who are in our CI watch list,” he added.
Albayalde will succeed outgoing PNP Chief Ronald dela Rosa, who has been named as Bureau of Corrections chief. (Benjamin Pulta/PNA)
