PNP ignores Sara’s tirades

MANILA, Philippines — Stressing that it is better to focus on their personnel who were affected by Typhoon Carina, Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil opted to ignore the tirades of Vice President Sara Duterte, who cried “political harassment” over the removal of 75 PNP members from her security detail.

Marbil’s stand on the issue was relayed yesterday by PNP public information officer Col. Jean Fajardo, who said that Marbil is busy attending to the needs of PNP personnel who were victims of Carina’s onslaught last week.

The PNP chief visited two police officers who were wounded in a shootout with a wanted fugitive in San Juan, Batangas on Sunday.

“He preferred to focus on the needs of our police and not to answer whatever issues our country is facing right now,” Fajardo said at a news briefing at Camp Crame.

“Our PNP chief himself appealed to us to do our police work and please spare the PNP organization from these political issues and noise,” she added.

In an open letter, Duterte called out Marbil for allegedly lying about the reasons for the removal of her police security escorts, particularly when the PNP chief said that there is no threat to the Vice President’s security.

Marbil cited the need to put more police officers on the streets as the reason for the need to recall some police officers who had been Duterte’s escorts.

Duterte revealed that PNP operatives have gone to the place where she and family reside for a “casing” or surveillance operation.

Sought for comment, Fajardo denied that the PNP is conducting such a surveillance on Duterte and her family.

The PNP official declined to comment on the other allegations that Duterte had enumerated in her letter.

“Whatever issues are contained in the letter of our Vice President, maybe it will be better for all of us and for the citizens to address it silently,” Fajardo said.

She added that the police officers who were recalled from Duterte’s security detail are doing well at the National Capital Region Police Office where they were reassigned.

The PNP earlier said a total of 106 PNP officers were assigned to Duterte. The figure does not include their counterparts in the Armed Forces