MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Aaron Aquino belied allegations that Police chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde had intervened on the drug charges against 13 Pampanga policemen.
This was contrary to Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong’s claim earlier that Albayalde had asked Aquino not to implement the dismissal order against the cops.
READ: PDEA chief says Albayalde inquired about case of 13 rogue cops in 2016
Albayalde was the director of the Pampanga Provincial Police Office when the policemen were found guilty of grave misconduct for failing to account all confiscated evidence during an anti-drugs operation in Mexico, Pampanga, in November 2013.
“Wala syang (Albayalde) sinabing ganun. Wala syang sinabi,” Aquino told reporters after the hearing of the Senate committee on justice on Tuesday.
The PDEA chief though admitted during the hearing that Albayalde phoned him sometime between July and December of 2016 to ask not only about the status but also for a review of the case.
Aquino, at that time, was the Central Luzon police chief.
And even if he wanted to implement the dismissal order against the cops, Aquino said he could not do it because there was a pending motion for reconsideration filed in March 2016.
Asked if he could consider Albayalde’s request for a review as an intervention, the PDEA chief answered in the negative.
“Hindi naman siguro sa tingin ko intervention ‘yun… (I don’t think it’s intervention)” he said, noting that Albayalde simply asked about the status of the case and requested for a review.
“Pero sinabi ko din sa kanya (But I also told him) that his men, all of his men will be reassigned to Mindanao because SOP sa akin ‘yun eh (that’s SOP for me). All policemen involved in some crimes – scalawags or erring cops – they will all be assigned in Mindanao.”
“Actually, sa tingin ko, kaibigan ko naman si General Albayalde. Pwede naman ‘yun, makikisuyo lang s’ya kung pwedeng i-review ‘yung case. Hindi naman siguro ako in a way na parang inuutusan n’ya. Nasa tamang pananalita rin ‘yun na nakikisuyo ka lang to review the case and not ordering me to review the case as the regional director,” he further said.
(Actually, I think, General Albayalde is my friend. He can make a request to review the case. I don’t think he’s ordering. There’s a right way of making a request to review the case not ordering me to review the case as the regional director)
Albayalde became PNP chief only in April last year. /kga