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Wednesday, October 06, 2004
2 lawyers v. top cop
TWO lawyers went yesterday to the Court of Appeals (CA) to persuade it to throw PNP Director General Edgardo Aglipay out of office.
Daryll Amante and Nicanor Alvarez, in a petition for prohibition and injunction, said Aglipay’s appointment as PNP chief is “illegal” to begin with.
Aglipay, the two lawyers said, is considered retired as of Sept. 13, 2004, the day he turned 56.
But the PNP director general pointed out Amante is the lawyer of 10 of the 11 men accused of manufacturing shabu in Mandaue City and that the petition is a form of harassment.
Clarification
Aglipay, though, sees nothing wrong with what the two lawyers are doing.
“This is a democratic country. All taxpayers can seek clarifications on matters pertaining to the running of our government,” he said in a press conference yesterday.
But the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC), a group of crime victims led by Dante Jimenez, Lauro Vizconde and Martin Dino, condemned the petition.
In a press release, VACC said the lawyers’ petition is “loaded with malice and suspicion considering that Amante is the lawyer of convicted drug trafficker Wu Tuan Yuan alias Peter Co.
“Against this backdrop, (was Amante’s) unusual interest…in Aglipay’s appointment (caused by the fact that) Aglipay is a drug buster and he (Amante) is the lawyer of a convicted drug trafficker?” the release read in part.
Support
Aglipay also won the support of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), which is encouraging all its members to join a signature campaign recognizing the PNP chief as the “man of the hour” and that his term be extended beyond the six months given to him.
The CCCI, in a press statement, credited Agli-pay for the raids on the shabu laboratories in Mandaue City where 11 suspects and about P1.3 billion worth of drugs were seized.
Amante and Alvarez told the appellate court that Aglipay can no longer stay on as chief of the PNP without violating two rules—Section 25 of Republic Act 6975 and Section 25 of Republic Act 8551—that set the compulsory age of retirement in the PNP at 56.
Violation
His continued stay, they said, is already a violation of Article 16, Section 5, subsection 5, of the Constitution that explicitly prohibits extensions of retirement for the police and the military service.
Aglipay’s appointment was against the law in the first place because he was appointed as PNP chief last Aug. 20, 2004 or 25 days before his compulsory retirement date, the two further said.
They argued that by law, only those at least six months away from retirement could be considered qualified for the position.
The CA’s Cebu-based 20th division, called the petition for oral arguments yesterday.
Amante, who is facing a frustrated homicide case, and Alvarez want the CA to issue a temporary
restraining order against Aglipay to stop him from functioning and performing the duties and responsibilities as PNP chief.
They also asked the CA to “command” Aglipay not to draw his salary, allowance and other benefits and to “stop disbursing public funds.”
The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), on the other hand, asked the appellate court to transfer the hearings to Manila.
Assistant Solicitor General Ronald Hernan-dez said that because of Aglipay’s and OSG’s workload, it is too costly to hold the hearings here in Cebu.
Felicitas Aquino Arroyo, Aglipay’s lawyer, also argued that the appellate court is the wrong venue for the petition as this should have been filed with either Mala-cañang, which extended the term, or the National Police Commission.
Associate Justices Arsenio Magpale, Vicen-te Yap and Ramon Bato Jr. of the Appellate court’s 20th Division gave Aman-te five days to submit his comment to the OSG’s reply to his petition.
The PNP chief remained unfazed amid the legal fight as he formally declared yesterday the establishment of the Visayas Police Operational Area under the command of Police Regional Director Rolando Garcia.
As commander of the Task Force Visayas, Garcia has supervision over operations involving internal security and lawlessness in the entire Visayas area.
This means that Chief Supts. George Aliño and Dionisio Coloma of the Police Regional Office 6 and 8 will be under his command as far as operational matters go.
However, administrative decisions remain with the respective regional directors.
Aglipay also distributed “no kotong” pins to the three regional directors, who have orders to pin these on the uniforms of their policemen. (KNR/MEA/With GAN)
(October 6, 2004 issue)
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