Aquino tells heads of police school: Stop fighting

By: 11 years ago

CATHY MIRANDA/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines – President Benigno Aquino III on Monday scolded the bickering leaders of the country’s police teaching institutions, saying they should help each other instead of fighting to weed out alleged corruption in the academy.

Aquino was reacting to the rift between the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) and the Philippine Public Safety College (PPSC), whose officials were caught in a power play.

The PPSC, an attached agency of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, supervises the country’s police academies, which includes the PNPA.

“The rift has been going on in a long time and it is not amusing, anymore,” Aquino said in Filipino while he attended the PNPA graduation in Cavite on Monday.

“The purpose of these two is to ensure the quality output of the PNPA, not to waste their time fighting,” Aquino added.

Platon and Constantino have been embroiled in a power struggle for quite some time.

Ahead of the PNPA’s graduation on Monday, PPSC president Ruben Platon accused PNPA director Chief Superintendent Noel Constantino of violating the law by removing Platon as a signatory on the PNPA diploma.

Platon said he was informed his name was removed from the list of those who will confer academic degrees on the 202 graduating cadets, and he was left out of the signatories on the diplomas of the graduating cadets.

The PPSC said the move that supposedly disregarded authority was “unprecedented and in violation of existing laws.”

In October last year, Constantino was sacked by Platon allegedly due to Constantino’s allegations of corruption in the academy. Platon denied being behind Constantino’s removal.

President Aquino then ordered PNPA to return Constantino in the academy. Aquino asked Constantino to continue investigating the alleged corruption.

Constantino said he experienced perks as PNPA superintendent. He said he observed the lack of a procurement process for the food and services concessionaires within the PNPA, as well as cases of missing funds and unexplained transaction fees in the academy.

He also said some PNPA personnel force cadet-trainees to buy items from them, such as laptops and cellular phones, using their monthly salary.

Aquino said the results of the investigation may be released this week.

He appealed to the PNPA and PPSC to help each other instead of bickering.

“They should be helping each other and correct the problem…” the president said.

“Can I take this opportunity to remind those involved of your mission: Take care of our cadets. Train them well, lead by example ,” Aquino added.