Regional training center-7 employees axed for corruption

MANILA, Philippines — Gen. Debold Sinas, chief of the Philippine National Police, has ordered the relief of all employees and officials at the Regional Training Center 7 (RTC-7) in Cebu pending an investigation of the alleged unauthorized deductions from salaries and allowances of police recruits and police personnel undergoing training.

“File administrative cases against all personnel involved in these highly irregular, corrupt acts at the expense of the lowly recruits and other students,” Sinas ordered Police Maj. Gen. Alex Sintin, director of the PNP Training Institute (PNPTI), which oversees all the PNP RTCs.

“The training center should be the most ideal place to shape the character of police recruits, it should maintain zero tolerance to graft and corruption,” he said on Friday.

Sinas also ordered to provide information to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group for the filing of criminal complaints against all RTC-7 personnel involved in the irregularities.

The PNP chief acted on the reports of Police Col. Warren de Leon, director of the PNP Intelligence Group, which validated information of “highly irregular activities” at PNP RTC-7 under training director Police Col. Edwelito Rosales.

Recruits of Class Spartan and Class Madasig undergoing the public safety basic recruit course validated the intelligence report. Recruits of Class Spartan graduated on Feb. 3.

The recruits said they were forced to pay overpriced amounts for their uniform, accoutrements and meals, which were deducted from their monthly salary.

The investigation found that during the Christmas and academic break in December 2020, a thousand students were each made to pay P10,080.00 for two months worth of meals despite being on vacation leave.

Each of them also paid P3,650 for COVID-19 antigen test, which the recruits claim was grossly overpriced.