2 police officers fired for poor performance

Two ranking police officials in Taguig and Pateros have been fired because of their poor performance in solving crime and battling illegal drugs.

Southern Police District (SPD) director, Chief Supt. Tomas Apolinario Jr., said that the relief of Supt. Maurito Caraguian and Chief Insp. Ritchie Salem, assistant police chiefs for operations of the Taguig and Pateros police stations, respectively, should serve as a warning to others.

Group decision

According to Apolinario, the two failed to deliver on the four parameters set by the District Oversight Committee, which is composed of the SPD’s high-ranking officers.

They were judged on their performance in the following areas in the first half of 2018: crime solution efficiency, enhanced police operations, police community relations and the war against illegal drugs.

Apolinario said their relief should serve as a “challenge and warning” to other police officials to “double their efforts in the campaign against illegal drugs to meet the target [in] the given time frame.”

Command responsibility

Caraguian was also relieved on the grounds of command responsibility after one of his men, Chief Insp. Juan Cipriano Jr., was fired by Philippine National Police Director General Oscar Albayalde.

Cipriano was one of two policemen apprehended by the Inter-Agency Council for Traffic in April for driving a “colorum” (operating without a franchise) passenger van.

With the relief of Caraguian and Salem, they will be replaced by the assistant police chiefs for administration of their respective police stations: Supt. Clarence Gomeyac (Taguig) and Supt. Joel Goforth (Pateros).