Thursday, August 30, 2007 Espinoza: Arrest of Meloy Garcia group not enough By Elias L. Espinoza Free Zone
THE Lapu-Lapu City police’s arrest of a woman who tried to bribe an arresting officer was a fresh relief for the Philippine National Police (PNP). This after the National Bureau of Investigation charged three Cebu City cops with extortion.
Lapu-Lapu City Police Chief Louie Oppus and members of his force thus deserve commendation for a job well done and for living up to the expectation of the public.
A friend joked that had the bribe been offered to members of the defunct vice control section of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) the woman, Nenita Nuñez, could have saved her nephew, Benjie Abing, from the drug charges.
The extortion case against SPO1 Jaime Otadoy, PO1 Raniel Capangpangan and PO3 Rey Albotra of the CCPO, if my memory serves me right, is the first in Cebu City. The three allegedly demanded P2 million from businessman Reuel Lerio.
There were speculations, however, that the extortion try could have involved ranking police officers because of the huge amount demanded from Lerio. This is something that the regional police office or the NBI should further investigate if they really want to rid the PNP rank of scalawags. **** The wedge dividing Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña and Gov. Gwen Garcia has now extended to Rep. Raul del Mar’s relationship with Rep. Pabling Garcia and his congressman son Pablo John.
The rift started when del Mar supported Rep. Jose de Venecia during the election for speaker of the House. Pabling ran but was outvoted by de Venecia.
I am not saying that Pablo John is nitpicking on whatever del Mar is doing in Congress, especially those involving legislations for Cebu, but his objections to del Mar’s proposals can be misunderstood that he is an obstructionist.
When del Mar favored the annexation of the town of Cordova to Cebu City, Pablo John manifested his opposition to it. He also opposed del Mar’s move to amend the Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) charter.
Del Mar’s move was based on the suggestion of Lapu-Lapu officials, after the city was classified as highly urbanized, that the governor should no longer sit as member of the MCIAA board. Is Pablo John’s stance purely politics or is it his way of getting back at del Mar, who did not support Pabling in the election for House Speaker?
Whatever is the reason, this is not good for Cebu. Our congressmen should set aside personal interests and advance instead the interest and welfare of the public that put them into office and power. *** The label Bohol Robbery Group that was not flattering to Bohol has become a non-issue when members of the robbery gang of Casimero “Meloy” Garcia were arrested after they robbed the Bank of Commerce in Tagbilaran City.
Garcia’s group was tagged as responsible for the robbery on La Nueva Supermarket. Meloy may have eluded Cebu City’s supposedly elite cops but he failed to do so this time to cops in his own place in Bohol.
But while the Bohol police have arrested members of the Garcia group, they have yet to recover the huge loot taken from La Nueva and other firms.
No malice intended, but the Bohol police should have investigated the management or the owner of the beach resort in Panglao, Bohol where Garcia was arrested after the Tagbilaran heist.
I don’t think Garcia, together with his cohorts, just walked into the beach resort without the resort’s management knowing him. The police should look at all angles to determine if there are other personalities involved.
