Cebu mayor accuses city’s top cop of getting payola from illegal gambling

CEBU — Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has accused the director of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) of receiving payola from illegal gambling.

During his campaign rally last Sunday, Osmeña alleged that CCPO Director Col. Royina Garma received P1 million every week as payoff  from illegal gambling when she was still chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7),

The reelectionist mayor claimed he received a document showing there was a complaint filed against Garma for purportedly receiving bribe from illegal gambling.

“This came from Napolcom (National Police Commission) together with NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) and PCSO (Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office) where they talked about the illegal gambling in the country,” said Osmeña.

In the document read by Osmeña, it stated that Garma is also “a protector of the illegal gambling operations of Globaltech’s Peryahan ng Bayan.”

Osmeña, however, refused to divulge who gave him the documents.

“I just want to let the people know… You know it’s my job to report to the people and I am supposed to protect the people. I don’t want the people to protect me,” he said.

In a separate interview, Garma described the accusations hurdled against her as an “old issue”.

“That was a long time ago,” she said.

Garma admitted there was an inquiry about her alleged involvement in illegal gambling but she was already cleared by Napolcom and NBI.

“Before I assumed as city director (of CCPO), I was already cleared with that issue. Nothing new,” she said.