Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), will meet with all the commanders of anti-illegal drugs enforcement units in Metro Manila to discuss a new policy that would compel all anti-narcotics policemen to be clean amid allegations of recycling of drugs and drug protection racket of scalawag policemen.
“It will be a one-strike policy for all my commanders. This is to ensure that zero tolerance against policemen involved in illegal drugs activities is strictly observed,” said Eleazar, adding that the meeting will be on Tuesday.
Based the new guideline, the head of the drug enforcement unit will immediately be relieved if even one of his men is caught involved in selling and even in using shabu and other illegal drugs.
The station commander, Eleazar said, will also be sacked. There are 38 police stations in Metro Manila.
The same policy will also be observed at the district level wherein the head of the district drug enforcement will also be booted out of a post if even a single of his men is arrested for illegal drugs link.
The district director will also be immediately relieved, according to Eleazar.
There are five police districts in Metro Manila: Manila Police District, Quezon City Police District, Southern Police District (covers Makati, Paranaque, Taguig, Las Pinas, Pateros and Muntinlupa), Eastern Police District (covers Marikina, Pasig, San Juan and Mandaluyong) and Northern Police District (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela).
The same policy will be implemented if even a single member of a drug enforcement unit is found to be recycling drugs or under the payroll of illegal drugs syndicates, according to Eleazar.
“I believe this will force all the commanders of drug enforcement units in Metro Manila to behave and at the same time, compel their men to do what is right, to be clean at all times,” said Eleazar.
This is part of our Intensified Cleanliness Policy. We have to exert all efforts to clean our ranks because all our anti-illegal drugs accomplishments, all the good intentions of the government to finally end this drug problem will be futile because of these handful of scalawags in our ranks,” he added.
In case of serious drug offenses that would involve more than two policemen in a station drug enforcement unit or district enforcement unit, the entire unit—from commanders down to the last anti-drug-operative—will be sacked and replaced. And station commanders or district directors will not be spared.
Eleazar said that he had already relieved more than 500 anti-drugs operatives in Metro Manila, starting when he was the district director of the Quezon City Police District and when he became the NCRPO director.
Eleazar has further intensified the campaign against scalawag cops after Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Aaron Aquino disclosed that recycling of illegal drugs are still rampant and that some erring cops have been protecting a shabu queen operating in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
To further maximize the monitoring of erring cops, Eleazar met with Aquino last week to share notes and obtain fresh intelligence reports about any Metro Manila policeman involved in illegal drugs trade. (Aaron Recuenco)
