Name permanent PNP chief, Aquino urged

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–A number of senior police officers have called on President Aquino to appoint a permanent replacement for Philippine National Police Director General Alan Purisima who resigned amid the Mamasapano massacre controversy.

One officer, who asked not to be identified for fear of reprisal from superiors, said the appointments of a number of senior PNP officers had been put on hold as a result of the resignation since Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina, who took over but only as officer in charge, did not have the authority to appoint them to new posts.

“The whole police organization is in limbo because, technically, we don’t have a formal head of agency,” the source told the Inquirer.

“We’re hoping the President would see the adverse effects [the lack of] a permanent PNP chief are having not only on our careers as police officers, but on the efficiency of the whole organization,” he said.

He said the lack of a successor to Purisima had affected the designation of permanent directors in at least four regional police offices.

Another ranking officer, who likewise declined to be named, said many in the 150,000-strong PNP had become “demoralized” over the recent developments involving the force, noting that the public perception of the PNP had been declining.

“How can we expect the public to support the PNP when we don’t even have a leader? Mapping out an effective anticrime program would be difficult without somebody guiding the organization on full-time status,” he said.

Limited powers

In a press briefing at Camp Crame, PNP spokesman Chief Supt. Generoso Cerbo Jr. admitted the police organization had been affected by the lack of a full-fledged chief.

But he stressed that law enforcement operations were continuing despite Espina’s “limited powers.”

“We have remedial measures to ensure the unhampered delivery of services to the people and address these limitations,” Cerbo said.

“We respect and submit completely to the wisdom of the appointing authority in naming the next PNP chief; we assure the public service the service we render will remain at 100-percent,” he said.

Meanwhile, nine senior police officers have been named to new posts in officer-in-charge capacity.

Among them was Chief Supt. Noli Talino, who was relieved as the deputy of Director Getulio Napeñas, the sacked Special Action Force chief.

Talino was named deputy commander of the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations in Northern Luzon, considered a “freezer” post in the PNP.