PRO-7 to be more transparent on drug operations

The Police Regional Office (PRO)-7 assured that they will be more transparent in case a suspect in an anti-drug operation gets killed.

“Malalaman niyo na agad kung sino yung nakapatay na pulis. Yun ang guidelines ngayon, so kung pito sila, meron na agad malalaman kung sino yung nakabaril ng fatal shot,” Chief Supt. Jose Mario Espino, director of PRO-7 said. (You will immediately know who among the operatives has fired a fatal shot. That is the guidelines now.)

He also assured that the police involved will be subjected to an investigation and will be asked to explain the circumstances why it led to the suspect’s death during the operation.

The result of the investigation will also be released to the public.

Espino is asking drug personalities to surrender during operations and not fight back.

“Ang warning lang namin sa mga drug personalities, it’s better to surrender in case may mga operation against them so that hindi ma pwersa ang pulis to have that kind of self-defense,” Espino said. (I’m warning them that it is better to surrender in case there is an operation so that the police will not shoot and claim self-defense.)

Those police personnel who underwent a refresher course or have not committed any operational lapses will be assigned in the drug enforcement units.

To recall, the police were taken out of President Rodrigo Duterte’s flagship campaign to cleanse the country of all forms of narcotics twice because of public outrage of police-led extrajudicial killings.

In October, Duterte then placed the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) as the sole agency to conduct antiillegal drug operations.

Two months later, Duterete gave authority to the PNP to conduct anti-drug operations again citing lack of PDEA’s manpower to combat illegal drugs and because of the public’s clamor for the police to help solve the drug problems.

Espino said that during a conference with all the chiefs of police stations and PDEA, it was discussed that an hour before the operation the police are mandated to inform PDEA and seek authority.

“We have already set the guidelines and procedures given to us by the PDEA, so expect for this week and the coming weeks, we will again see arrests of drug personalities,” Espino said. —

L. Avila/MBG

Mae Clydyl