Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa was prompted by Senator Panfilo Lacson to also focus and prioritize the internal cleansing of the police force during the Senate hearing on the killing of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa inside his cell.
“More than the cleansing of the streets, yung leaning ng kalsada natin and society of drugs, siguro yung equally important trust of the PNP should be addressing the cleansing operations ng police officers,” Senator Lacson said to Dela Rosa.
The Senator mentioned this because of the allegation that police officers linked to illegal drug syndicates were the ones responsible for the vigilante-style killings in order “to cover their tracks.”
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Senator Lacson, a former PNP chief, said that these policemen kill drug suspects, pretending that it is a part of a legitimate police operation.
“Sometimes they resort to vigilante-style killings. Alam mo iyan, may nangyayari na pulis mismo ang involved sa mga riding in tandem,” Lacson told Dela Rosa.
PNP’s records show that a total of 1,941 people were killed due to anti-illegal drug operations from July 1 to November 23 alone. The over 1,000 people killed by suspected vigilantes, who are usually men on board motorcycles, are excluded in this number.
The Senator asked Dela Rosa to “give attention or equal importance, if not more importance” to narco-cops, adding that while the police try to stop the drug lords and pushers, they should also address the cops involved in the trade.
“I would just advise you na bigyan ng pansin iyong internal cleansing, iyong pag-impose ng internal discipline,” he said. “Sa akin half of the battle has been won kung ang mga members ng police ay disiplinado.”
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Senator and former PNP chief Lacson also warned dela Rosa that “in the long run,” these “scalawags” will ruin the cops’ leadership.
“I would suggest na tiwala ka naman sa mga officers na ina-assign mo, from time to time siguro ay dalas-dalasan ninyo yung bull session, parang sabihan ng sama ng loob para nagkakaintindihan kayo,” Lacson said.
Source: (gmanetwork.com)
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