75 Central Visayas cops face relief for laxity in drug arrests
CEBU CITY–Seventy-five of 126 police station chiefs in Central Visayas are facing relief for failing to arrest half of the drug personalities in their watch list since February 2016.
Senior Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, deputy director for operations of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), recommended that these police chiefs be reshuffled instead of imposing stiffer penalties against them.
“This should serve as an eye-opener for them to do their jobs well, not just sit down and do nothing,” he said in an interview Wednesday.
Lawas’ recommendations had yet to be approved by Chief Supt. Noli Taliño, PRO-7 director.
Last February, the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame ordered all police chiefs to submit the names of the top 10 drug personalities in their respective areas.
When Taliño assumed his post last July 4, he learned that of the drug personalities listed in Central Visayas, many remained free since several station chiefs had not done anything to arrest them.
Lawas, the head of the Oversight Committee on Illegal Drugs, was surprised to discover that about 60 percent of all station chiefs in Central Visayas composed of Cebu, Bohol and Siquijor failed to deliver what was expected of them.
Based on the records of PRO-7, out of 126 police stations in Central Visayas, 75 failed to arrest the top drug personalities in their areas.
Thirty-nine of these non-performing police stations are spread across Cebu province, 18 others in Bohol, eight in Cebu City, five in Mandaue City, three in Lapu-Lapu City, and two in Siquijor.
Lawas said they gave the station chiefs the chance to explain why they failed to arrest the top drug personalities in the area.
He was told that several drug personalities fled to other locations but didn’t present any proof.
“It’s easy to say that their targets could no longer be found. That goes to show that they really didn’t monitor or track them down. They were given since February to make some arrests. We’re now on the fifth month and yet they failed to arrest even half of the targets. Some even made zero or just two arrests,” Lawas said.
He reminded all policemen regarding President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to stop the spread of illegal drugs in the country in three to six months.
“The focus now is on illegal drugs because this is of more pressing concern. There’s no time for us policemen to relax,” Lawas said.
He said all police station chiefs will be evaluated every six weeks to determine whether or not they are doing their jobs.
“If you’re relieved from your post, don’t get dismayed otherwise you better leave the service. Instead, use it to motivate yourself and to prove that you can do something better,” Lawas said. CDG
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