PNP Chief General Ronald De La Rosa.
EDWIN BACASMAS/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Following the killing of Korean businessman inside Camp Crame, Philippine National Police chief Dir. Gen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa on Monday said the government’s war on drugs will be temporarily put on hold while they prioritize going after rogue policemen.
In a press briefing, Dela Rosa said the PNP will suspend its antidrug operations for an indefinite time to focus on cleaning its own ranks.
“Humanda kayo ngayon, kayong masasamang mga pulis. Wala na kaming war on drugs. Meron kami ngayong war on scalawags. Lilinisin namin ang hanay namin ngayon. Then after that, maybe, babalik na namin kami sa war on drugs. Linisin muna namin sabi ni Presidente,” Dela Rosa said.
(Rogue cops, beware. There is no war on drugs for the meantime. We’re shifting to war on scalawags. We will clean our own ranks first. Then after that, maybe, we can resume to the war on drugs. We’ll clean our ranks first according to the President.)
“I don’t know how long will it take to cleanse the PNP, but with each and every one of us cooperating, I am sure, kahit sabihin mo sigurong one month, kaya naming gawin ‘yan (even if you give us a one-month deadline, we can do it),” he added.
Dela Rosa said the PNP will form a counter-intelligence task force against rogue cops, adding that he instructed various units to consolidate efforts and come up with a list of police scalawags.
“Siguraduhin natin na ang magiging leader nito (task force) ay beyond question, beyond doubts. Kailangan malinis ito na tao at matapang, kayang bumangga sa tiwaling pulis,” he said.
(We have to make sure that the leader would be without question and doubts. He needs to be clean, courageous and has no qualms about fighting rogue cops.)
“No more anti-drug operations, we have to focus our efforts towards internal cleansing… The president will determine that and he will instruct us to go back to war on drugs, but for now no more drug operations… That is why starting today I dissolved the Anti-Illegal Drugs Group, all anti-drug units from the national, local to the police station level,” Dela Rosa added.
The PNP chief also thanked President Rodrigo Duterte for still having trust and confidence in him despite earlier calls for his resignation over the murder and abduction of Korean trader Jee Ick-joo.
Jee was taken from his home in Angeles, Pampanga last October 18, 2016 by policemen of the PNP Anti-Illegal Drugs group in the guise of a drug operation. It was later revealed that the businessman was killed inside the police headquarters in Camp Crame the same day he was abducted. IDL/rga
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