Stop illegal drug trade, HRIT
MARCHING ORDERS TO NEW P.D.
LINGAYEN—The newly designated police provincial director in an officer-in-charge capacity hardly warmed his seat when he received his marching orders or the improvement of peace and order in the province from Gov. Amado T. Espino, Jr.: Prioritize campaign vs. illegal drugs and solve killings by hitmen-riding in tandem (HRIT).
The new provincial police director, P/Senior Supt. Sterling Raymund Blanco, who officially assumed his new post by virtue of Camp Crame’s selection and PRO1’s designation on January 15, 2014, received his orders when he paid a courtesy call on the governor the following day.
The governor welcomed Blanco and expressed hope that relations between the provincial government and the police will improve following a history of terse relations with the previous police director, Senior Superintendent Marlou Chan.
Espino told Blanco that he wants the police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to wage an all-out war against illegal drugs amidst reports of its proliferation in Pangasinan.
He further expressed discontent over the low conviction rate of drug cases, which prompted him and the Pangasinan Judges Association led by Judge Hermogenes Fernandez to sponsor last month a seminar for police officers and lawyers on the proper handling of drug cases to be filed in court.
“Pulis ang dapat pukpukin sa isyung ‘yan,” Espino said.
BLANCO’S RESPONSE
For his part, Blanco, vowed full cooperation and action on the governor’s marching orders.
“My only intention is to serve the province,” said Blanco who was joined by newly-appointed Police Regional Office I (PRO1) OIC Moro Virgilio Lazo and deputy provincial director for administrations Lawrence Sison during the courtesy call.
Blanco, who was previously chief of the PRO1’s Intelligence Division, said he will immediately call on the province’s police officers to get ready for action against illegal and the unsolved killings.
“We need to solve the killings and we can only do this with the cooperation and support of the people,” he said.
He added that he will look into the possibility of the presence of a drug laboratory in Pangasinan and intensify the existing Patrol 101 program “to put more police on the street and more criminals behind bars.”
Secretary Antonio “Bebot” Villar Jr, chairman of the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB), who is from Pangasinan, has raised an alarm over reports of proliferation of illegal drug trading in the province.
Espino, a retired police senior superintendent and former provincial director of Pangasinan, issued a memorandum Thursday to all mayors enjoining them to support the campaign.
“Our very own DDB Chair Bebot Villar is asking for intensified local government unit support in the anti-drug campaign in Pangasinan,” the governor told the mayors.
He said although the provincial government has been conducting anti-drugs seminars and other support activities, “we all know that anti-drugs campaign, especially the job of breaking the illegal drugs supply/marketing chain, is principally a police matter”.
He pointed out that the tasks of surveillance, apprehension and arrest of drug pushers/dealers belong to the PNP.
“Nonetheless may I urge everyone to undertake intensified anti-drugs campaign measures in your respective localities. Better still if the Pangasinan Mayors’ League can meet to discuss and plan a coordinated effort,” he added.
Meanwhile, PDEA Region 1 Director Adrian Alvariňo said in a separate interview that he received a similar marching order after paying separate courtesy call to the governor Thursday.
Alvariňo said he had earlier talked with Blanco about illegal drugs, prior to his designation as OIC provincial director of Pangasinan.
He said PDEA R1 has been recognized as the best regional office by the PDEA central office for apprehending more than 95 percent of the target drug personalities and the significant volume of drugs seized.
“We have several arrests and seized drugs yet there is low price so it means oversupply so we have to look at the source and monitor closely the shorelines to prevent its entry,” Alvariňo said.
SP RESOLUTION
The appointment of Blanco came through just after the Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed a resolution on January 13 informing President Benigno Simeon Aquino III of their “deep sense of frustration over the inaction and indifference of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas, National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) and Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Alan Purisima” on the matter of a vacant police director post.
The author of the resolution, Board Member Alfonso Bince Jr., was to personally deliver a copy of the resolution to the President.
The Pangasinan Mayors League was planning to issue a similar resolution.–Reports from Tita Roces, Johanne R. Macob and Dada Austria
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