PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief Ronald Dela Rosa told senators Wednesday that President Rodrigo Duterte had ordered him to bring Superintendent Marvin Marcos back to active service.
"The President always intimated to me kung puwedeng patrabahuhin na ‘yan pagtrabahuhin na dahil sayang ang pera ng gobyerno," said Dela Rosa when asked by Senator Grace Poe on who ordered him to reinstate Marcos during the resumption of the Senate probe on Rolando Espinosa's slay.
Marcos is facing criminal charges in relation to the killing of Espinosa, the late mayor of Albuera, Leyte, who was involved in drugs.
"Every time na lalabas siya (Duterte) sa media lagi niyang sinasabi na pagtrabahuhin na. I take it as an order from my boss, I'm just taking hints from his statement," he added.
Duterte had said he spoke to Dela Rosa to reinstate Marcos as head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Eastern Visayas after the court downgraded to homicide the murder charges against him.
Dela Rosa, however, told senators that he advised Duterte to go slow on Marcos' reassignment as it is still a "hot issue" but later on realized that there is no reason for him not to obey the President's order considering that the police officers are already out on bail.
In the report of the Senate committees on public order and dangerous drugs and justice and human rights dated March 12, it said the killing of Espinosa was "premeditated" by those who conducted the operation.
It cited the accounts of self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa, son of the late mayor, who said that his father was intentionally killed for him not to be able to reveal the policemen involved in illegal drugs.
Marcos and his men conducted the operation that resulted in the killing of the older Espinosa inside the Baybay sub-provincial jail in Leyte.
He was re-assigned as the head of CIDG-Soccsksargen while the other police officers who took part in the controversial operation were deployed in other CIDG units in the Visayas and Mindanao.
The reassignment came after Duterte publicly stated that he wanted Marcos and his men to be reinstated although Dela Rosa in his earlier statements denied the President's hand on the Marcos' reassignment.
However, the PNP chief said that re-assignment of police officers immediately after going out of jail is not "normal process," but he allowed it due to lack of people on the ground.
The PNP chief expressed the belief that Duterte's backing on Marcos case has boosted the morale of the police.
"Nakakataas ng morale because the President is man of his words. Sabi niya 'pag kayo may problema, andito ako baback-upan ko kayo. Naniniwala siya na 'yung ginawa ni Marcos in line of duty kaya tinutulungan si Marcos na patrabahuhin muli," he said.
Dela Rosa appealed to the senators to give him another chance on Marcos' case and that if he will be involved again in any irregularity, he will take it personally against the police official.
"Iyong impunity hindi mangyayari ‘yan. 'Yung impunity kasi para bang above the law na walang pakialam na they can do whatever they want, hindi mangyayari ‘yan. I will do anything to stop impunity," he said. (SunStar Philippines)