Alvarez takes back resignation call: Give Bato a chance

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez backtracked on his call for Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to resign following the killing of a Korean national on the grounds of the PNP headquarters.

Alvarez made this statement in a radio interview with DZRH on Monday when asked why he attended the birthday bash of Dela Rosa on Sunday night.

Alvarez said he was now open to giving Dela Rosa a chance to cleanse the PNP of rogue cops.

READ: House Speaker calls for Bato resignation

“I have said my piece at ito naman ay siguro… ay sasang-ayon ako doon sa mga ibang nagmungkahi na bibigyan natin ng pagkakataon si Chief PNP natin na ayusin yung mga gusot na hinaharap ngayon ng PNP,” Alvarez said.

(I have said my piece… I now agree to the recommendations of others to give the Chief PNP a chance to fix the predicament being faced by the PNP.)

Alvarez said he realized that while the PNP has scalawags within its ranks, there are also well-intentioned cops.

“Alam naman nating lahat na hindi rin ganoon kadali yung trabaho, sa dami ng scalawags na naiwan ngayon sa PNP. Mayroong mga matitino ano, marami,” Alvarez said.

(We all know their jobs are not that easy, with a lot of scalawags left in the PNP. But there are good ones too, many of them.)

“Ngunit, sa haba ng panahon din, dumami din yung mga masasamang pulis,” he added.

(But, after a long time, the number of rogue cops is increasing.)

READ: Back to ‘crime scene’: SPO3 Sta. Isabel turned over at Camp Crame

Alvarez denied that President Rodrigo Duterte, who also attended Sunday’s birthday bash, talked to him to retract his resignation call on Dela Rosa.

“Isa lang po ang ni-request sa akin ni Presidente, yun nga pong tutukan yung pagbago ng ating Saligang Batas (The President only asked for one request—which was to focus on changing the Constitution),” Alvarez said, referring to moves in Congress to amend the 1987 charter to pave the way for a federal system of government.

Alvarez said he was invited to attend Dela Rosa’s birthday bash despite his resignation call.

He clarified that his friendship with Dela Rosa would not affect his work as leader of the House of Representatives.

“Gusto ko lang linawin na siyempre, hiwalay yung pagkakaibigan at saka doon sa trabaho natin. Naimbitahan naman ako ni General Bato doon sa birthday niya, so nagpunta ako bilang kaibigan din,” Alvarez said.

(I wanted to clarify, our friendship is separate from our work. I was invited by General Bato to his birthday, so I attended as a friend.)

READ: No need to resign, Bato told

“At doon ay, yun nga, alam mo naman, napag-usap-usapan, biruan ng biruan, sabi ko basta sige, okay na yun, gawin na lang yung kung ano yung sinabi,” he added.

(And there, we talked and joked. I said, ‘that’s okay now, just do what is said to be done.’)

Alvarez on Friday first issued the statement for Dela Rosa to resign after Hanjin executive Jee Ick Joo was kidnapped and killed on the PNP grounds allegedly by SPO3 Ricky Sta. Isabel.

The Korean national was strangled inside a car parked near the building where Dela Rosa holds office, rousing criticisms against the PNP chief over a murder that happened under his nose.

READ: Korean businessman killed inside PNP headquarters

Alvarez said it seemed Dela Rosa was more keen on making himself popular through gimmicks, while running scared at the sight of danger, referring to a viral video of the PNP chief fleeing from a smoking firecracker.

Alvarez also criticized Dela Rosa for attending concerts even as the PNP is waging a war on drugs and a war against its own scalawag cops.

“Social media like Youtube is now replete with the booboos of General Dela Rosa including his running away from a press conference like a headless chicken after the pyrotechnic device he was holding started to smoke,” the Speaker said.

“General Dela Rosa seems more interested in having a showbiz career and in landing on society pages of newspapers with his being everywhere doing mundane things like singing videoke and watching concerts,” he added. RAM/rga