THE Police Regional Office (PRO)-Northern Mindanao on Thursday, November 29, said it is waiting for an official order from the national headquarters on the reassignment of Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido back again to Ozamiz City.
PRO-Northern Mindanao spokesperson Superintendent Surki Sereñas said they will wait for the written orders from the higher headquarters after the pronouncement of President Rodrigo Duterte at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ozamiz Airport Modernization Project on Wednesday.
During the ceremony, Duterte asked the crowd if they wanted Espenido back.
“Gusto niyong ibalik si Espenido (Do you want Espenido reinstated here)?” Duterte asked the crowd, who cheered and applauded in response.
In the middle of his speech, Duterte called Philippine National Police chief, Director General Oscar Albayalde, to bring Espenido back to Ozamiz.
“There is presidential pronouncement. We are awaiting written orders from higher headquarters. We cannot issue order because Espenido is not under our jurisdiction,” Sereñas said.
“If the national headquarters issue order reassigning Espenido to PRO-10, we will assign him right away to Ozamiz City,” he added.
At present, Espenido is the chief of police of Virac, Catanduanes.
In 2016, Espenido was the chief of police of Albuera, Leyte when the town's then mayor Rolando Espinosa, father of drug suspect Kerwin Espinosa, was shot dead inside the sub-provincial jail in Baybay City.
He was transferred to Ozamiz City on December 8, 2016, wherein then mayor Reynaldo Parojinog and 14 others linked to illegal drugs were killed in a pre-dawn raid shootout. (With reports from PNA)