9 NCRPO officials’ fate hangs on explanation

MANILA, Philippines - Nine Metro Manila police officials who were found to have underreported crimes in their areas of jurisdiction by as much as 60 percent will have to come up with a good explanation in order to avoid being removed from their posts, a ranking official of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) said yesterday.

“Once we find their explanation to be satisfactory, honest to goodness, with merit and without malice and that they had no intention of hiding the true figure of criminality in their jurisdiction then we would reconsider them and allow them to stay,” said Chief Superintendent Christopher Laxa, NCRPO deputy director for operation.

NCRPO director Chief Superintendent Marcelo Garbo Jr. held in abeyance the relief of the nine police officials but ordered them to submit their explanation – not later than next week – of the discrepancy between the crimes they reported from January to June and the crimes validated by the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM).

Garbo noted that some of the nine police officials assumed their posts only after the newly elected mayors in Metro Manila were inducted into office by the end of June.

Sources told The STAR that some of the mayors, with the help of a religious group, have been lobbying for some of the nine police officials to be retained.

Laxa said they are checking who among the nine police officials were already at their posts when the DIDM validated their crime incident reports. “They are the most likely to go,” he said.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima, who had ordered the DIDM to conduct an inventory of crimes in the country to get a clearer picture of the peace and order situation, left Garbo to decide on who among the nine officials will be relieved.

Purisima has approved the relief of several police officials in the Bicol region, Ilocos and Region 2 for doctoring their reports, but said he cannot act on DIDM head Director Don Montenegro’s recommendation to relieve all nine Metro Manila police officials who underreported crimes. The PNP chief said the report has not reached his desk.

Montenegro identified the erring city police chiefs as Senior Superintendents Rodolfo Llorca of Pasay, Florendo Quibuyen of Mandaluyong, Joselito Daniel of San Juan, Arthur Felix Asis of Taguig and Ariel Andrade of Parañaque.

He also named Manila Police District Station 4 (Sampaloc) commander Superintendent Santiago Pascual, MPD Station 9 (Malate) commander Superintendent Manam Muarip, Quezon City Police District Station 10 (Kamuning) commander Superintendent Limuel Obon and QCPD Station 7 (Cubao) Superintendent Ramon Pranada.

Laxa, in criticizing Montenegro’s report, said the DIDM personnel had been inconsistent in their validation of crime incidents – they included thousands of traffic accidents in Pasay but did not include them in Muntinlupa City.

Some of the nine police officials failed to include cases handled by the women’s and children’s protection desks while the DIDM included these cases in their inventory, Laxa said.