Vice President Leni Robredo is urging Director General Ronald de la Rosa, PNP chief, to reveal who called him to ask for the reinstatement of Supt. Marvin Marcos as chief of CIDG-8. Photo by DEXTER CABALZA/Philippine Daily Inquirer
Alarming and a cause of public concern.
That’s how Vice President Leni Robredo described the claim of Director General Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), that a “higher-up” official asked him to reinstate Supt. Marvin Marcos as head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Region 8 (CIDG-8).
“It’s a cause of our concern,” Robredo said on the sidelines of a housing and development project discussion among Pasay City residents on Friday. “Kasi unang-una, yung police officer na subject for this is involved in a murder case. Kung ni-reinstate because of intervention from somebody up there, nakakabahala iyon.”
(“First, the police officer is involved in a murder case. If Marcos was reinstated because of intervention from somebody up there, then that is alarming.”)
“Lalo na kasi gusto nating ipaabot sa mga tao na seryoso yung laban natin against drug abuse,” she added. “Parang ano yata, kontra sa gusto nating palabasin.”
(“Especially now that we want to tell the public that we are serious in fighting drug abuse. What is happening is contrary to what to show the people.”)
Robredo is also the chair of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council.
Members of the CIDG-8 were blamed for the death of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa while being served a search warrant inside the Leyte Subprovincial Jail in Baybay City on Nov. 5.
Marcos, the CIDG-8 chief, and his officials – led by Supt. Noel Santi Matira and Senior Insp. Leo Laraga – have since been relieved from their positions and recalled to the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City. They remain under restrictive custody while an internal affairs investigation is ongoing.
De la Rosa relieved Marcos shortly after suspected Eastern Visayas drug lord Kerwin Espinosa, the son of the Albuera mayor, was arrested in the United Arab Emirates last month.
PNP-Anti Illegal Drug Group officials who interviewed Espinosa identified Marcos as among the police officials involved in drug operations in Eastern Visayas and receiving payoffs from him.
De la Rosa said an unnamed official, he referred to as “a compadre,” to return Marcos to CIDG-8 after the latter was transferred to CIDG-9, which covers Western Mindanao.
“Tingin ko it is incumbent naman upon General Bato na sabihin… kasi sinasabi niya meron sana siyang order to transfer him to another place… Ano ‘yong basehan kung bakit may order na gano’n?” Robredo said.
(“I think it is incumbent for General Bato to reveal [this official], because he had said that there’s already an order to transfer him to another place. What is then the basis of the order [for Marcos to return to CIDG-8].”)
“Kasi ang tingin ko kailangan ma-allay yung fears… kasi siyempre if it’s somebody from Malacañang, nakakabahala,” Robredo added.
(“We need to allay the fears because it is alarming if that somebody was from Malacañang.”) –ATM