PNP spokesman flip-flops on PCSO intelligence funds

The spokesperson of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Friday flip-flopped on the question of whether the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) had given part of its intelligence funds to regional police offices.

Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said at first that based on his past experience, the PCSO disbursed intelligence funds to the regional PNP offices. He retracted his statement a few hours later. His remarks were taped on audio recorders by reporters.

Illegal numbers game

“When I was in the province, I know PCSO gave funds to regional offices—probably intelligence funds,” he said in an interview with reporters yesterday morning.

Pressed further, Cruz said that “those were intel funds.”

He said the funds were used to monitor “illegal numbers games” and he knew this “based on his personal experience.”

Cruz was a provincial director of Oriental Mindoro before he became the PNP spokesperson in 2010.

Cruz said he did not know if such an arrangement was made at the national level. He also couldn’t give an answer as to how much money was involved.

Turnabout

After his statements were reported on radio Friday afternoon, Cruz contacted reporters to clarify that he never made any such confirmation and that he had no personal knowledge about PCSO intelligence funds wounding up in police offices.

Cruz told reporters he was only referring to the regular PNP intelligence funds, and not the PCSO funds.

Higher levels

“We don’t deal with PCSO at the regional or provincial levels. It’s at the higher levels,” he said. Asked if he meant the offices at the National Headquarters at Camp Crame, he said he couldn’t confirm that.

The PNP gets upward of P200 million in intelligence funds from the national budget.