MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) will reassign around 2,800 police officers who have relatives running in the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) on October 30.
PNP spokesperson and public information office chief Col. Jean Fajardo said these findings came from the report Directorate for Personnel and Records Management (DPRM) within the period of filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) from August 28 to September 2.
“Nasa around 2,800 plus na po, ibibigay ko po ‘yung exact figures mamaya,” Fajardo told reporters.
(Around 2,800 personnel will be temporarily transferred. I’ll give the exact figures later on.)
“So ang nasa rules po kasi ay within the fourth degree consanguinity or affinity we have to declare para mailipat po sila at maialis po doon sa mga lugar kung saan inaasahan pong may mga tatakbo silang mga kamag-anak,” she added.
(Our rules cover policemen with relatives within the fourth-degree consanguinity or affinity. We have to identify them so they can be transferred and taken out from the area where their relative is running.)
Aside from policemen with relatives running in the local elections, Fajardo earlier said they would also talk to candidates believed to have close ties to its personnel so the force could assess whether or not they need to be reassigned.
She likewise emphasized that the reassignment process of personnel with blood ties to candidates is a “normal practice” within the force to prevent cops from being used by politicians to earn favor during polls.
— With reports from Harold Hernandez
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