President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday tasked the members of the national and regional peace and order councils to address cases of political violence as well as those stemming from the illegal drug trade.
The President said these were today’s two biggest concerns threatening peace and order in the country.
He also said that an internal review being conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) aimed at determining cops with drug links will conclude in two weeks or so, as he vowed to relentlessly fight the proliferation of illicit narcotics in the country.
Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos said the CCTV footage “speaks for itself” in the alleged cover-up attempt of some cops in the P6.7 billion drug haul in October 2022.
Abalos made the statement in response to the defense of PNP Chief Police General Rodolfo Azurin Jr. that no cover-up happened during the operation.
“In law, there is the principle of res ipsa loquitur. The thing speaks for itself. The video in itself is a statement of what transpired,” he said in a statement.
“While I respect General Azurin, I am sure he agrees with me that the public deserves to know the truth. This is not only about the issue of the 42 kilograms, but what happened to the 900 kilograms of shabu,” he said in a mixture of English and Filipino.
Addressing the 1st Joint National Peace and Order Council and Regional Peace and Order Council Meeting 2023 in Malacañang, President Marcos said Tuesday’s event was timely as his government confronts the increasing violent activities, particularly after last year’s election.
“They happened just after the election… almost one after the other. So, it became very prominent in the minds of the townspeople that it had really become too bad,” he told the participants.
“And of course, that is true because even one is too much. But nonetheless, in terms of the political violence, I think, I hope, and we must continue to look out for, and watch out for,” the Chief Executive said.
The peace and order councils must also focus on addressing the proliferation of illegal or loose firearms that fuel violence in the country, he said, at the same time warning against the rise of warlordism.
The other overwhelming problem confronting the country today when it comes to peace and order is violence perpetrated by drug syndicates quarreling over territory with the involvement of some members of the police force, Mr. Marcos said.
“It stems from the territorial fights over areas where drugs are distributed, who controls the drug trade in that area. Sometimes we hear there is a real scalawag there,” he said.
“So, we really need to watch carefully that these activities that are growing have to be dismantled.”
The 1st Joint NPOC and RPOC Clusters Meeting was organized to provide updates on the peace and order issues in the country and to aid policy decisions as well as facilitate immediate action from concerned agencies.
The 2016-2022 accomplishments include the successful surveillance and intelligence operations by the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, anti-insurgency and anti-terrorism efforts, anti-illegal drugs campaign, and effective COVID-19 response.
Through the anti-insurgency and anti-terrorism efforts, coupled with the revitalized National Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the government disbanded 67 guerilla fronts, neutralized 8,645 Communist Terrorist Groups (CTG), and facilitated the surrender of 28,713 rebel members.
In the fight against illegal drugs, the government reported a total 261,642 anti-illegal drug operations conducted from 2016 to 2022, which resulted in the arrest of 376,582 drug personalities and the seizure of 12 tons of marijuana, 14 tons of shabu, 190,324 pieces of ecstasy, and 500 kilograms of cocaine.
Regarding the overall peace and order situation, the government reported that the total crime volume in 2022 decreased by 11.87 percent, from 235,059 in 2021 to 207,143.
It said that crime solution and crime clearance efficiency by the end of 2022 were at 82.28 percent and 96.72 percent, respectively, it said.
Earlier, Abalos called on 10 cops, including PNP Drug Enforcement Group (PNP-PDEG) director Brig. Gen. Narciso Domingo, to take a leave of absence over their possible link to the alleged cover-up.
In October 2022, authorities arrested now-dismissed Master Sergeant Rodolfo Mayo Jr. and confiscated 990 kilograms of confiscated shabu in Manila.
Around 42 kilos of the confiscated drugs were allegedly stolen by some cops after the operation.
Abalos said Napolcom’s fact-finding panel was convened due to the supposed slow pace of the police investigation into Mayo’s case.
He presented to the media CCTV footage, which showed Mayo in handcuffs and then later released. The video also showed police officials arriving and leaving the premises of an establishment where Mayo was.
Abalos said Napolcom’s probe showed that “there is indeed a massive attempt to cover up the arrest of Mayo.”
Some of the 10 police personnel allegedly involved, including Domingo and former PNP deputy chief for operations Lt. Gen. Benjamin Santos Jr., have denied involvement in the supposed cover-up.