PNP vows to stay ‘apolitical, nonpartisan, professional’ in 2016 polls

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

The Philippine National Police on Friday said it would not take sides in next year’s general elections despite President Benigno Aquino III’s endorsement of its overseer, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, as the administration’s presidential candidate.

Chief Supt. Wilben Mayor, spokesperson for the PNP, said the police were “apolitical, nonpartisan and professional.”

“We will focus on our mission to ensure that the next election will be peaceful and orderly. We will focus on our mission to enforce the law and maintain peace and order,” Mayor told reporters.

Roxas, as secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), is head of the National Police Commission, which supervises the 160,000-strong PNP.

On Friday, President Aquino officially endorsed Roxas, his vice presidential running mate in the 2010 elections, as the Liberal Party’s standard-bearer in the 2016 national elections.

Stepping down

As expected, Roxas accepted his nomination. He must resign his Cabinet-level job before filing his certificate of candidacy in October.

Mayor said President Aquino would choose a replacement for Roxas at the DILG. The PNP will accept whoever Mr. Aquino chooses, he said.

He said the PNP was grateful to Roxas for his support to the PNP, especially in the improvement of its capabilities and in the campaign against criminality.

It was under Roxas’ leadership that the PNP acquired new equipment such as patrol jeeps, firearms and communication devices.

Anticrime drive

The PNP’s anticrime campaign has resulted in a 60-percent decrease in weekly crime statistics in Metro Manila since its implementation in June 2014.

The approach involves the deployment of more policemen to hot spots, as well as an intensified drive against criminal groups.

Mayor said the anticrime campaign was so successful under Roxas’ guidance that it had been implemented in the Central Luzon and Calabarzon regions.