Albayalde to fortify discipline, accountability in PNP

Metro Manila police chief Director Oscar Albayalde confronts the Mandaluyong City policemen involved in the December 28, 2017 shooting incident. (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/ NIÑO JESUS ORBETA)

The stricter, the better.

This would be the mantra that incoming Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director Oscar Albayalde would stick to as he vowed to strengthen internal discipline and cleansing of the nation’s 190,000-strong police force.

Albayalde said on Friday he would hold ground commanders down to the community precinct level responsible for instilling discipline and accountability among their ranks.

“Here, as part of our internal discipline and part of our internal cleansing, we will put responsibility on various commanders on the ground down to the PCP [police community precinct] level,” Albayalde said in a video conference with reporters at Camp Crame in Quezon City.

“They will be made responsible for the deeds or misdeeds or the actions or misactions of all their subordinates o lahat ng tauhan nila doon sa kanilang opisina (all their men in their office),” he added.

Speaking in front of farmers and fisherfolks, President Rodrigo Duterte said on Thursday that Albayalde is very strict, and the “stricter [leader], the better.”

“He is very strict. Albayalde is the man for you. The stricter the better,” he said in his speech.

READ: Duterte says Albayalde will be next PNP chief

Albayalde, the current regional director of the National Capital Region Police Office, would take the helm of the PNP in the midst of efforts to cleanse its ranks from rogue and erring policemen.

Albayalde is known for enforcing strict discipline among his men. Early this year, he had been inspecting police stations to check on policemen sleeping on their posts.

In 2017, he also ordered the relief of 1,100 policemen in Caloocan City following the consecutive killings of teenagers Kian Loyd Delos Santos, Carl Angelo Arnaiz, and Reynaldo “Kulot” De Guzman.                        /kga