VOL. XXX NO. 134 3 Sections 24 Pages P18 SUNDAY : JUNE 26, 2016 www.thestandard.com.ph editorial@thestandard.com.ph
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TOP COP BLASTS DRUG CODDLERS By F. Pearl A. Gajunera, John Paolo Bencito and Francisco Tuyay
DAVAO CITY—Among the 35 mayors who are being probed for their alleged involvement in the narcotics trade are mayors in the provinces of the Davao region, incoming Philippine National Police directorgeneral Chief Superintendent Ronald dela Rosa said Saturday.
Incoming PNP chief Ronald dela Rosa
“There are mayors involved in drugs in the nearby provinces of Davao region, just around Davao City,” Dela Rosa told journalists here after Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu submitted a list of politicians in his province who are also supposedly involved in the illegal drug trade. Dela Rosa did not identify the mayors but warned the “narcopoliticians” that he will soon be going after them and they will be treated just like ordinary criminals.
“Those mayors who can feel that their new [chief of police] is hard-headed and won’t follow their orders, then, it’s them,” said Dela Rosa, adding that he will purposely assign his men to the narco-politicians to catch them. He said that as soon as he sits down as the new PNP chief, he will have a major revamp and will personally pick 15 new regional directors who have the courage to fight government officials involved in illegal activities. Dela Rosa said that the existing
15 regional directors have failed to do their jobs because the drug situation in our country is still the same. Earlier this month, Presidentelect Rodrigo Duterte revealed that there are politicians as well as three generals who are into illegal drug activities. Duterte even warned the generals to resign from their posts while he is not yet the president or he will humiliate them publicly. One of the local leaders who was being tagged as being involved in narco-politics was Mangudadatu who submitted his own list of suspects as he vowed to help in Duterte’s anti-narcotics drive. At the same time, Mangudadatu filed libel raps against media groups that claimed he and his brothers Khadaffy and Jong were among the drug lords in Maguindanao. “In the list that I submitted to President Duterte, there are local Next page
JAKARTA BAN PROMPTED BY ABDUCTIONS THE Indonesian transportation ministry banned Indonesian-flagged vessels from sailing to the Philippines, the transport ministry said, after yet another violent kidnapping in the strife-torn waters between the two nations. The Indonesian ministry announced the ban as Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines Neil Reeder sought a meeting with President-elect Rodrigo Duterte to discuss the Abu Sayyaf Group’s kidnapping and eventual killing of two of their nationals. “This hijacking issue is a serious matter and cannot be tolerated anymore,” said Antonius Tonny Budiono, directorgeneral for sea transportation of Jakarta’s transportation ministry. The transport ministry issued a notice informing all harbor masters they were “strictly prohibited from issuing permits to all Indonesian-flagged vessels bound for the Philippines, without exception.” The ruling was issued after the government confirmed seven Indonesian sailors were kidnapped at gunpoint earlier this week, and were being held hostage by an unknown group. It’s the third time this year Indonesian sailors were abducted in the Sulu sea, a vital waterway that’s seen a spike in seaborne crime like armed robberies and kidnappings. Next page
Anti-drugs drive. Incoming National Police chief Ronald dela Rosa reiterated his upcoming campaign against narco-politicians as Quezon City police killed a suspected drug pusher in a gunfight at a remote area of the University of the Philippines in Quezon City. AFP PHOTO