Senate set to probe Marcos’ return to CIDG duty

MANILA, Philippines - The Senate will look into the reinstatement of suspended Supt. Marvin Marcos and his subordinates who are facing criminal charges for the killing of mayor Rolando Espinosa of Albuera, Leyte last year.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, chairman of the Senate public order and dangerous drugs committee, told reporters that he intends to conduct an inquiry within the week after the opening of the second regular session of Congress on July 24.

Lacson said he would ask the Philippine National Police Internal Affairs Service (IAS) about the circumstances behind the reinstatement of the accused police officers led by Marcos, former chief of the police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Region 8.

The Senate panel last year conducted an investigation into the killing of Espinosa, whom President Duterte had identified as a drug lord, inside his cell in Baybay, Leyte in November.

The committee concluded that Espinosa’s killing during an operation led by Marcos was premeditated.

Marcos and 18 members of the CIDG in Eastern Visayas are facing homicide charges over the death of Espinosa and another inmate Raul Yap on Nov. 5, 2016 inside the Leyte sub-provincial jail in Baybay City.

Espinosa was detained for alleged drug trafficking.

The CIDG agents claimed that Espinosa fought back when they tried to serve a search warrant to recover guns the mayor reportedly kept even while in detention.

Lacson, a former PNP chief, on Thursday spewed out expletives to express his outrage over the reinstatement of Marcos and his men saying the development aggravated the already weak administrative penalties imposed on the policemen.

“It is not even a reinstatement. Rather, it was back-to-duty status after serving his four-month suspension order incorporated in a ‘slap-on-the-wrist’ administrative penalty,” Lacson lamented.

The National Bureau of Investigation recommended that murder charges be filed against Marcos and his men but the Department of Justice, which has supervision over the bureau, downgraded the charges to homicide and allowed the accused police officers to post bail.

PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa on Thursday announced the reinstatement of Marcos following the announcement of President Duterte that he wanted the police officer back in service.

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said the reinstatement of Marcos and his men was meant to protect Duterte from being implicated in the killing of Espinosa.

Trillanes claimed that Marcos and his men would have revealed that the President ordered the killing of Espinosa if they were left to serve time for the crime.

“Duterte not only set the murderers free, he now gave back their badges and guns so they could murder again with impunity. Why? Because Duterte fears that these policemen might rat out on him for what they know about his involvement in the Espinosa murder,” Trillanes said.

Sen. Richard Gordon urged Duterte “to just leave the matter of finding out the culpability” of Marcos and the others to the courts.

“He (Duterte) is a man of the law, he must not waste his political capital on this. It is admirable that he is fighting for the police. He was a mayor, too, as I was, so I understand him. I don’t want him to fall on his own sword,” Gordon said in statement.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian voiced support for the resumption of the Senate inquiry as he warned the government that the reinstatement of Marcos could cause demoralization in the PNP.

Palace cooperation

Malacañang urged all concerned officials yesterday to cooperate with the upcoming Senate inquiry.

Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella also defended the PNP leadership’s move to give Marcos and his men new assignments apparently in deference to Duterte’s pronouncement.

“The reinstatement of the superintendent is basically in compliance with the fact that he was suspended and that the suspension has been served. And he’s now, he’s eligible back to duty,” Abella said. “In other words, he’s abiding by the rule of law,” he added.

Abella added that the move has not at all demoralized the members of the police and the military.

“The government will cooperate. I mean the government through the PNP will cooperate with any, with any investigations. We have always participated in any hearings and we will continue to abide by that,” he said.

PNP spokesman Chief Supt. Dionardo Carlos clarified yesterday that Marcos and the 18 other police officers involved in the killing of Espinosa and Yap were on leave of absence while in detention.

Carlos explained that in their procedure, police officers charged with non-bailable offenses such as murder are automatically placed on leave of absence status.

“When Marcos et al were charged with the crime of murder and warrants of arrest were issued, the officers were detained automatically. Their status is they were on leave of absence,” Carlos said in a news briefing in Camp Crame, Quezon City.

“When the case was downgraded to homicide and allowed them to post bail, the leave of absence status of these PNP personnel were lifted,” he said. “With the lifting of the leave of absence, they were placed on duty status.”

Marcos and the other police officers posted bail last June after the Department of Justice downgraded their case from murder to homicide.

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said yesterday that the PNP decision to reinstate Marcos and appoint him as the head of the CIDG in Region 8 would send a wrong message and undermine the rule of law.

“It furthers the culture of impunity, especially after charges were downgraded from murder to homicide even if the National Bureau of Investigation and Senate reports determined that the death of Albuera mayor Rolando Espinosa was premeditated and abuse of authority,” said CHR spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia.

The International organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) yesterday also slammed the reinstatement of Marcos and other police officers.

In a statement, HRW deputy Asia director Phelim Kine said the IAS decision to reinstate Marcos and the other policemen showed that the law enforcers supposedly involved in summary killings are enjoying impunity under the Duterte administration. – With Christina Mendez, Marvin Sy, Janvic Mateo, Emmanuel Tupas, Elizabeth Marcelo