Despite the recent spate of high profile crimes in Cebu City, Mayor Michael Rama remains confident that the city will win its bid to host the 2015 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
He said the APEC national organizing committee should not see these crimes such as the failed ambush on businessman Dr. Rico Medina as a hindrance in choosing Cebu City as the summit venue.
“The city remains safe. Mas grabe pa ang Manila kay sa nato (It’s worse in Manila than here in Cebu City). Peace and order there is decaying,” he said.
Rama said the city’s peace and order concerns will be best addressed if the PNP hierarchy allows him to replace Senior Supt. Mariano Natu-el with Senior Supt. Noli Romana as Cebu City police chief.
“If there is a crime spree, who gets blamed? What Natu-el is doing, it’s not part of my program. I don’t want to solve crimes, I want to prevent crime from happening,” he said.
Rama said he was prepared to elevate his concerns to court if the need arises.
“They believe that I won’t do it? This is nothing personal. The formula for the police to do their work well is to give me my chief of police,” the mayor said.
Rama said Cebu City was peaceful when he had former city police directors Josephus Angan and Ramon Buenafe as his city directors.
Meanwhile, the Police Regional Office (PRO-7) said the suspects identified in the failed ambush of Dr. Rico Medina and his family have ties to the failed billion peso Aman Future pyramiding scheme.
Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo, PRO-7 chief, said they are now working with some personalities involved in the scam which involved investors from Cebu and Mindanao.
Chief Insp. Romeo Santander, chief of the Cebu City police’s City Intelligence Branch (CIB) said they requested their counterparts in Mindanao to submit the backgrounds of Dr. Medina.
Garbo also said it is up to Rama to withdraw the city government’s financial support to the Cebu City police.
Rama earlier insisted that he wanted Senior Supt. Noli Romana to take over from Senior Supt. Mariano Natuel, Jr.
“That kind of move would also affect not only the PNP but also the whole community which is the client of the good mayor,” Garbo said in an interview.
The Cebu City government is paying P2,000 allowance for each policeman as well as supplying vehicles, and fuel to the Cebu City Police Office. /Edison Delos Angeles, Correspondent