Police Gen. Oscar Albayalde, the Philippine National Police chief, mentioned three possible successors when he retires in October, namely, directorial staff chief, Police Lt. Gen. Camilo Cascolan; deputy chief for operations, Police Lt. Gen. Archie Francisco Gamboa and National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) director, Police Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar.
Today, crime volume nationwide is declining. In the first quarter of the year, it was down 3.3 percent compared to 2018.
In Metro Manila, “major focus crimes” such as murder, homicide, physical injuries, rape, robbery, theft and carjacking dropped 57.69 percent in the first 35 months of the Duterte administration.
In July 2016, the crime volume in Metro Manila was 21,782. It went down to 18,580 in 2017 and 14,911 in 2018. In the first four months of this year, it further declined to 5,277.
Analysts attributed this to two major policies started by ex-PNP chief, now Senator-elect Bato dela Rosa, and Albayalde: The war on drugs and the PNP’s “internal cleansing.”
The improvement in the peace and order situation in Metro Manila — despite last year’s runaway inflation rates and fuel prices, and the rice and water shortage crises—led to the President getting an unprecedented +72 net approval rating, 6 points higher than the previous +66, according to a Social Weather Stations survey.
His rating went up by 5 points in Metro Manila.
In the May 13 elections, voters in the National Capital Region (NCR) made Dela Rosa, the implementer of the President’s war on drugs, their top pick for senator.
Again, this was a very clear indication that they favored the war on drugs as implemented by Bato, Albayalde and now, Eleazar.
Since June 1, 2018, the crime rate in Metro Manila has dropped with Eleazar at the helm of the NCRPO.
He has consistently pounced on “police scalawags” involved in crimes. He has relieved district police commanders and the police chiefs of Pasay, Taguig, Las Piñas and Caloocan as part of a no-nonsense internal cleansing.
He is seen at every major police arrest, even during the wee hours of the morning, confronting the suspects while condoling with families of victims.
He has arrested rich and influential suspects at the “elite hangout” of Time bar in Makati City, 5-star hotels and exclusive subdivisions, while continuing very active anticriminality operations in poor neighborhoods.
During his term as NCRPO chief, the usual violent confrontation between militant groups and antiriot police have stopped. All public meetings, including the ones held during the “heated, but not violent” campaign period in the NCR, were handled well.
Eleazar is available at all times for interviews, a quality that is a must for the next PNP chief who must be able to communicate not only with Metro Manila media but also with those in other urban centers nationwide.
Finally, Metro Manila residents now trust the police and are actively reporting crimes within their communities. No offense to the other candidates for PNP chief, but Eleazar will be hard to beat.
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