CEBU CITY, Philippines—Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Oscar Albayalde ordered the relief of Police Colonel Raul Tacaca, director of the Negros Oriental Police Office (Norpo), from his post on Wednesday afternoon, July 31, 2019, following the spate of killings in the province.
Albayalde announced Tacaca’s dismissal to the national media through PNP spokesperson, Brigadier General Bernard Banac.
“This is to confirm that Negros Oriental provincial director, Police Colonel Raul Tacaca has been relieved from his position to give way to an impartial probe on possible lapses by his administration in light of several high profile killings in the province for the past several days,” said Banac.
The relief order is effective immediately.
Police Colonel Angelito Dumangeng, deputy regional director for operations of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7) will take on Tacaca’s responsibilities as officer-in-charge of Norpo.
Albayalde also ordered the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management to lead the probe on the recent killings in the province, which is now at 20 deaths covering the period from July 18 to 25.
In a phone interview with CDN Digital, Tacaca said he is still waiting for the relief order from Camp Krame, the PNP headquarters.
He refused to comment on the reason for his relief.
“We will follow the directives of the PNP chief,” said Tacaca.
The recent spate of killings in Negros Oriental include four policemen, one former mayor, three barangay officials, two teachers and a family of three. / celr