President Duterte has fired Bacolod City chief of police Senior Supt. Francis Ebreo and four other policemen for their alleged involvement in illegal drugs.
Malacañang said Duterte made the announcement in a private event in a hotel in Bacolod City the other day.
“I’d like to know if the chief of police is here. If you are here kindly stand up because you are fired as of this moment,” Duterte said in a speech. “In your involvement in drugs and making the people of Bacolod miserable, I am relieving and dismissing you from the service as of now, Senior Supt. Francis Ebreo,” he added.
According to Malacañang, Duterte also announced the dismissal of four other police officers. “Then you have Supt. Tayuan…And Supt. Yatar…And there is Victor Paulino, police SI… Macapagal, you are out,” Duterte said.
According to Malacañang, the President said the policemen are protecting the drug syndicates in the city. “But these persons that I have mentioned have something to do with the interest of the city…you are protecting, or you are in cahoots with the drug syndicate in the city,” Duterte said.
Malacañang said that Duterte has ordered the sacked police officers to report to his office this afternoon.
Chief Supt. John Bulalacao, director of the Philippine National Police Regional Office 6, said yesterday that he was shocked over the firing of Ebreo. “Nagulat din ako dahil hindi ko inaasahan na ito palang Bacolod City police ay mayroong mga reports na siya daw ay allegedly enabling the proliferation of illegal drugs,” Bulalacao said.
According to information reaching Bulalacao, Ebreo was allegedly “protecting” the commissioned and non-commissioned officers of the Bacolod City Police who are said to be involved in the illegal drug trade.
Bulalacao said the information came from Duterte himself.
The Western Visayas police chief said Ebreo showed satisfactory performance as the city police’s commander. “Ako ay nanghihinayang dahil magaling siyang officer at naayos niya ‘yung disiplina ng pulis dito sa Bacolod City. Marami naman siyang mga naging accomplishments kaya lang dahil sa report na ito kaya nagkaroon ng problema,” Bulalacao explained.
Aside from Ebreo, four other policemen were sacked by Duterte – Supt. Allan Macapagal, Supt. Richie Yatar, Supt. Naruddin Tayuan, and Senior Insp. Victor Paulino.
Bulalacao said not all of them are still in Bacolod. Tayuan has been re-assigned to Mindanao when Bulalacao became the Western Visayas police chief in June 2018.
“May mga reports talaga itong mga ito pero dahil nga wala pa kaming hawak na ebidensya ay nakapagtatrabaho pa sa amin,” he stated.
Ebreo was replaced by Senior Supt. Henry Binas, the acting chief of the PRO-6 Regional Personnel and Human Resource Development Division as the officer-in-charge of the Bacolod police.
Ebreo and the four other sacked Bacolod cops were ordered transferred to the PRO-6 Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit, Bulalacao said. “We will be conducting an investigation so that we can formally charge them administratively and criminally,” he added. (Argyll Geducos with a report from Martin Sadongdong)