Hundreds of policemen with alleged links to illegal drug activities will be reassigned to various dangerous areas in the country as part of the disciplinary and purging process of scalawags in the Philippine National Police.
Director General Ronald M. dela Rosa, PNP chief, said the biggest batch would be from Central Luzon where more than 100 policemen have been identified to be in cahoots with illegal drug traders.
“We will remove these policemen from their areas. This is part of the process,” said Dela Rosa.
Eighty-eight policemen from the Quezon City Police District have been deployed to various areas in Mindanao.
Scores of other cops from the National Capital Region Police Office were also re-assigned to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and the Caraga.
Dela Rosa said that there will be more policemen reassigned in the coming days.
Several policemen from Western, Central, and Eastern Visayas have been identified and will soon be deployed to the Cordillera Administrative Region.
“We also have several policemen from the ARMM who will be assigned to the northern part of Luzon,” said Dela Rosa.
“Let us remove all these policemen tainted with illegal drugs. Our strategy is to relocate, dislocate until they vacate,” said Dela Rosa.
The PNP has been all-out in the internal purging of policemen connected to illegal drugs. All the 180,000 uniformed and non-uniformed policemen were directed to be subjected to mandatory drug testing.
More than 20 policemen have so far tested positive and are now undergoing summary dismissal proceedings.
President Duterte publicly identified five active and retired generals whom he accused of having links to illegal drugs activities. (Aaron B. Recuenco)