Palace: Accusations alone shouldn’t force PNP chief Purisima to resign

Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Should Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Alan Purisima resign just because of accusations against him? He and other government officials shouldn’t, as far as Malacañang is concerned.

“Sa ating sistema ng batas meron po tayong sinusunod na mga proseso. Hindi naman yata makatwiran na humantong sa mga konklusyon na ang resulta ay pagkakaroon ng bahid o alinlangan sa integridad o katauhan ng isang public official na nakabatay lamang sa mga paratang,” Communications Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma Jr. said during a Palace briefing on Tuesday.

(We have processes to follow under our system of law. It is unjust to conclude that a public official’s integrity is already tainted based on accusations alone.)

Coloma was reacting to a reporter’s question on whether Purisima should do a “Juan” or follow the example of former National Food Authority (NFA) administrator Arthur Juan who resigned amid being accused of extortion. Juan, however, claimed health reasons for his resignation amid being investigated by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Purisima on Tuesday was grilled by senators for his alleged ill-gotten wealth and other controversies hounding the police force.

Coloma revealed that President Benigno Aquino III met with Purisima, who is his close friend, on Monday although he is not aware of what they talked about.

He reminded reporters of Aquino’s earlier statement that Purisima was not extravagant or greedy.

“Maliwanag naman po ang deklarasyon ng Pangulo hinggil sa kanyang pananaw sa pagse-serbisyo ni PNP Chief Alan Purisima,” Coloma said.

(It is clear in the declaration of the President what he thinks about the work of PNP Chief Alan Purisima.)

Asked if Aquino would still change his mind amid the filing of cases against Purisima, Coloma said it would be up to the President to decide on the matter.

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