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Tuesday, September 06, 2005
City Council wants anti-drug chief out
By Danilo V. Adorador III
Correspondent
THE City Council of Cagayan de Oro had enough of Superintendent Rene Orbe, the controversial regional director of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) 10.
A resolution calling for the immediate relief of Orbe is underway in the City Council, whose members took turns in rebuking the embattled anti-narcotics head during their regular session Monday.
Orbe will be called to the City Council next week to explain the series of extortion and bribery charges facing PDEA 10.
Most notably, the city councilors--who have earned the reputation of conducting a courtroom-style inquiry--are expected to grill Orbe on the Jabagat case.
His presence at the City Council inquiry was demanded on the pain of being declared as persona non-grata by the City Government.
The PDEA 10 chief earlier admitted giving P20,000 to the brother of drug-suspect Eric Jabagat, as payment for the alleged P30,000 bribe money previously given to a PDEA 10 agent identified as police officer Isah Taurac.
Orbe's spending of funds from his own pocket was seen by most local officials as a plain cover-up of the alleged extortion done by Taurac.
In recounting the August 21 botched entrapment operation against Taurac, opposition councilor cum broadcaster Zaldy Ocon described the PDEA 10 as a "pitiless" agency made-up of crooked officers."
For Councilors Reynaldo Advincula and Edgar Cabanlas, it would be better for PDEA 10 chief and his agents to disappear altogether.
"They have been giving shame to this city. They are victimizing the city residents," Councilor Advincula said, echoing reports that case-downgrading is prevalent in the anti-drug agency.
"The invitation to Colonel Orbe should be phrased like this: You are invited to the City Council to answer why you should not be declared as persona non-grata," Councilor Cabanlas said.
Along with Orbe, officials from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 10 and the Police Regional Office will also be called.
In phone interviews last Friday and Sunday, Orbe clarified that didn't grant nor sought favors from any local officials or top lawyers handling drug cases, saying he wasn't in the business of doing so.
The regional PDEA 10 official also said he welcomes Caisip's move to initiate an investigation into the incident and asked that the complaint be submitted in order to speedily resolve the extortion case.
(September 6, 2005 issue)
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