Relieved members of the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG) and the Regional Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (RAIDSOTF) do marching drills as part of their retraining. Police Regional Director Noli Taliño has relieved four police directors in Cebu.
(CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)
Police directors of Cebu, Bohol, Cebu City, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu get the axe
Following the mass relief of operatives of two special units, police directors from Cebu, Bohol, Cebu City, Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City came next.
Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa issued the order as part of the major revamp of police officers nationwide.
Relieved were Senior Supt. Clifford Gairanod of the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO), Senior Supt. Benjamin Santos of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), Senior Supt. Dennis Agustin of the Bohol Provincial Police Office (BPPO), Senior Supt. Jonathan Cabal of the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO), and Senior Supt. Arnel Libed of Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LCPO).
While waiting for further instructions, the four police officials from Cebu were directed to report to the Police Holding Accounting Unit in Camp Crame.
Chief Supt. Noli Taliño, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), said major revamps have been implemented from the national police headquarters to the lower units.
“The PNP leadership is really serious about putting new set of officers to key positions to achieve our objectives,” he said in a text message to CDN.
Senior Supt. Joel Doria, former chief of the Pasay City police, was appointed new director of the CCPO, while Senior Supt. Jose Macanas, former head of the Highway Patrol Group in Central Visayas, was named new CPPO director.
Dela Rosa also named Senior Supt. Roberto Alanas of the San Juan Police the new director of MCPO while Senior Supt. Romel Cabagnot, former provincial director of Samar, is the new head of LCPO.
The Bohol Provincial Police Office also has its new director today, Senior Supt. Felipe Natividad.
Good Job
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña lamented the relief of the operatives of the Regional Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (RAIDSOTF) and the Regional Special Operations Group (RSOG) who were responsible for neutralizing the top three alleged drug operators in Cebu.
“Why don’t they relieve me also? I don’t understand the logic. You know, these people are basically new people as far as I know,” Osmeña said.
Taliño had earlier said he wasn’t satisfied with the performance of these operatives.
But according to the mayor, these operatives were better than the previous ones.
“It’s very simple. Like in basketball, we have a winning team, so why change the players?” he said.
While admitting he was not in the position to evaluate, the mayor said the commanders were all new and were doing a good job.
Mass relief
Taliño on Monday reshuffled five senior officers who were holding key positions in the region. He also ordered the relief of all 67 operatives of the RAIDSOTF and the RSOG, saying they need to try other police units.
Taliño said he intends to replace the relieved RSOG and RAIDSOTF with operatives from the Regional Public Safety Battalion and policemen from the different police stations.
“I’m trying those two police units again. But I assure the people that it will not hamper the operations against illegal drugs. You know very well that any unit can fight illegal drugs,” he said.
Taliño said the former members of the RSOG and the RAIDSOTF will be assigned in the different police stations in the region.
They are currently undergoing refresher courses to reorient themselves with the “basics” of police work.
The five-day Balik Eskwela program started yesterday and will last for a week, after which they will be evaluated.
Dissatisfied
“When I arrived here (last July 4), I was really disappointed with the report on the police’s campaign against illegal drugs. We gave our station chiefs a week to do something. Some reacted but in general, nakukulangan pa rin ako (I was still dissatisfied),” Taliño told reporters yesterday.
Within the week, the Performance Evaluation Team or the Oversight Committee headed by Senior Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, PRO-7 deputy director for operations, will submit its recommendations.
“If I need to order the relief of the police chiefs, I will,” Taliño said.
PRO-7 identified 111 of the 126 police station chiefs in Central Visayas who failed to arrest half of the drug personalities in their watch list since February 2016.
They were given until last July 10 to improve their performances.
The Cebu City Police Office recently reported that it got nine of the top 10 drug personalities on its list.
Six of them were arrested, two surrendered, one was killed in an operation, while one remains at large.
But the PRO-7 director said he’s still not satisfied with the accomplishments of police officers in the entire region.
As of Monday, at least 50 police stations were able to convince drug users and pushers to surrender although they still failed to arrest 50 percent of their targets.
So far, Taliño said the peace and order situation in Central Visayas is “very manageable” since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed his post noon of June 30.
“We have a robbery incident in Lapu-Lapu City last week. But that’s it. Peace and order in the region is very manageable,” he said.
The new PRO-7 chief vowed to prioritize internal cleansing of the ranks and securing support from the communities, local governments, and the media as his agenda for eliminating illegal drugs and criminality in Central Visayas.