PNP chief includes mayor’s choice in list of 5; Will Rama get his way?

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama may get the police chief he wants after all.
The name of his favored nominee, Senior Supt. Noli Romana of Negros Oriental, was finally included in the short list of five names submitted to the mayor’s office for his selection.
Months of wrangling for his choice of police chief, which had Rama going to the PNP General Headquarters in Camp Rafael Crame himself to insist on his legal “right” to choose the top commander of Cebu City’s police force, moved closer to resolution with this step –- but the posting is not yet in the bag.
“I signed the papers last night after he threatened to withdraw support from the police”, Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo, police regional director told reporters yesterday.
Garbo sent over a list of five nominees.
The pressure involved the possible loss of a P2,000 monthly allowance per city policeman from City Hall, a gasoline subsidy of 100 liters per patrol vehicle and 20 liters for each police motorbike, including provisions for civilian drivers, and some firearms.
Garbo expressed disapproval over the choice of Romana for Cebu City, saying the officer was a non-performer in the campaign against illegal drugs and gambling.
He also said that a police driver and aide of Romana, who is the provincial police chief of Negros Oriental, were allegedly caught on video extorting money and had to be transferred after being found to be engaged in illegal gambling.
Garbo said a process still has to be followed in the seleection of a police chief, and that the mayor has to wait for the decision of Camp Crame.
The other four nominees submitted by the PNP are the incumbent city police director Senior Supt. Mariano Natu-el Jr.; Senior Supt. Erson Dial, chief of Regional Operations and Plans Division (ROPD); Senior Supt. Marciano Batiancila, chief of Regional Headquarters and Service Group (RHSG), and Senior Supt. Roderick Roderick Armamento, who is assigned in Bulacan province in Luzon.
Romana is acting provincial police director of Negros Oriental and used to be assigned in the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group.
At City Hall, Rama welcomed the change of heart but reserved a full celebration until the actual appointment is made by Camp Crame.
“We’ll see. At least I can choose from a selection. Kalami ana, kaysa dugay kaayo ko papilion. (That’s so much better than having to be made to wait for a long time before I can make a choice.)”
His persistence in getting Romana started last year.
Yesterday, Mayor Rama explained why he preferred this officer, a graduate of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) who once served in the Criminal Investigation Detection Group, although Rama had never worked with him before.
“He’s from PMA. It’s important to me that the Cebu city police chief is experienced and well trained,” Rama told editors and columnists of Cebu Daily News in a breakfast meeting, one of a series of media briefings he’s called on the eve of his assumption for a reelected term on June 30.
Rama said he was fed up with having his choice of a new city police chief ignored by PNP officials, when the law was clear about the mayor’s authority to select the chief from five qualified nominees presented by the PNP.
“I went to Camp Crame to speak with the PNP director general about this,” said Rama, who made a followup visit after he was reelected on May 13.
Rama said he told the PNP chief “I want my police chief!”
Asked about his adamant refusal to accept Senior Supt. Mariano Natu-el Jr., the incumbent city police chief, Mayor Rama said he didn’t want to speak ill of the officer and left it at that.
“I want a good program for crime prevention in Cebu City so that we will be solving fewer crimes,” he said.
Under the law, the mayor has “operational supervision and control” of the police in his area.
This includes the authority to choose the chief of police from a list of five eligibles recommended by the police director, “preferable from the same province, city or municipality” under Republic Act 6975 of 1900, the law establishing the Philippine National Police under a reorganized Department of Interior and Local Government.
At Camp Sergio Osmena, Garbo was more candid about his disapproval of Romana as a good choice for Cebu City. “I am not satisfied with (his performance) in the campaign against illegal gambling and illegal drugs”, Garbo told reporters.
“That’s my marching order. Critical tayo sa illegal gambling at illegal drugs. Wala siyang nagawa (He didn’t accomplish anything),” he added.
Garbo, who is also a PMA graduate, said that two policemen directly under Romana’s supervision had been caught on video extorting money.
The two policemen were identified SPO1 Somoza Vilan and SPO2 Edwin Pineda, the driver and aide of Romana. They were both transferred to the Police Regional Office 8 in Eastern Visayas.
Garbo said the two, who were brought from Mindanao by Romana, were shown in an investigation to be protectors of illegal gambling.
Romana is a classmate of former Cebu city police director, Senior Supt. Ramon Melvin Buenafe.
Mayor Rama had lobbied to hold on to Buenafe in Cebu City but Buenafe was reassigned to Manila before the May 13 election. The official explanation then was that this was a career move for him and that further schooling was in preparation for a higher position.
Romana, who recently visited Cebu City, confirmed in an interview that Vilan and Pineda were his men. He said he immediately ordered an investigation after learning that they were involved in wrongdoings.
Romana said he would leave it to higher headquarters to decide his next posting.
On the adverse comments of Garbo, Romana said the dissatisfaction of his boss in his performance was a big challenge to him. He said he would ways to improve if he is assigned in Cebu City.