Bato to NBP drug lords: I’m the boss

Undersecretary Ronald Dela Rosa attends the flag raising ceremony as the new Director General of The Bureau of Corrections at the New Bilibid prison, Muntinlupa City. INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA

On his first day as Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief, Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa talked tough, telling New Bilibid Prison (NBP) that he was the boss.

“I’m the tough guy here, not you. My rules, not yours, will be followed here,” he said on Monday during his “man-to-man” talk with convicted drug lords detained at Building 14 of the maximum security compound.

You can’t threaten me

“Don’t think that just because you are rich, you have the money, that you can threaten me. Never in your wildest imagination will that happen,” Dela Rosa added.

Earlier, Dela Rosa, who traded the navy blue Philippine National Police uniform for BuCor’s dark brown, presided over the flag-raising ceremony and gave the personnel a pep talk.

“Are you afraid of drug lords? Are you afraid to get killed by drug lords?” asked Dela Rosa, who was given the title of undersecretary due to the recent implementation of Republic Act 10575 or the BuCor Modernization Act of 2013.

BuCor personnel replied with a “no,” which their new boss obviously found lacking.

“Why should you wait for them to kill you? If they’re threatening you, those jerks are easy to kill because they’re jailed,” Dela Rosa went on to say.

He told his men to use their power and authority to fight back, saying: “Don’t be afraid of drug lords. I got your back.”

“I abhor BuCor personnel who are chickens. How dare you wear that uniform if you can’t even fight one jerk who is incarcerated,” Dela Rosa added.

Internal cleansing program

He said he would be applying the internal cleansing program he implemented as PNP chief to BuCor to stop drug trafficking at the NBP.

Dela Rosa said he was hopeful that with the implementation of R.A. 10575 which raised the salaries of BuCor personnel, making these at par with policemen, corruption would be reduced, if not eradicated.

“I will not promise you a bed of roses but I assure you that I will do everything to give what we ought to be receiving,” he added. —WITH A REPORT BY JONNABETH ORTEGA