HUNDREDS of pending administrative cases
filed against members of the Philippine National Police (PNP)
have reportedly "disappeared" from the files of National Police
Commission (Napolcom) in Makati City, reinforcing rumors of
case-for-sale schemes reportedly being carried out within the
agency.
The case folders, numbering around 500, were
being kept in the vault of the Inspection, Monitoring and
Investigation Service (IMIS) and were reported missing to the
Napolcom hierarchy only last week.
A Napolcom official who requested anonymity
for fear of reprisals from his superiors, revealed that the
subject files, ranging from simple administrative negligence to
grave abuse of authority, were still being heard and
investigated by IMIS, the Napolcom department that monitors and
investigates police anomalies and irregularities.
"It just disappeared. Nobody could say how
and when," the Napolcom source said, adding that IMIS officials
were left with no choice but to report it to Napolcom
commissioner Celia Leones.
In their staff meeting last Jan. 28, the
source said IMIS assistant director Norma Pullen reported to
Leones that many files were indeed missing and could not be
located. Also present in that meeting were Commissioner Miguel
Coronel and directors Myrna Medina, Isidro Siriban, and Rey
Sumanga. Manuel Pontanal, director for legal service and Eduardo
Castro, outgoing director of IMIS were absent.
The source said that when asked to explain,
some of (those present) gave alibis that the files were probably
still in possession of IMIS investigators and personnel. The
source said Leones immediately ordered the missing files be
located. "Too many cases are being negotiated for a fee in the
legal service. That is why there is no proper disposition of
cases. Sold out always," the official said.
One of the cases supposedly "sold" was the
sexual harassment complaint against Senior Insp. Marcelo Reyes,
SPO4 Joselito Von Possel, SPO2 Marinito Ramiscal, and PO3
Roberto Natividad of the Jose Abad Santos Police Station who
were acquitted of molesting two minors whom they arrested and
detained without basis.
"That case was disposed of, the policemen
getting only a slap in the wrist, with (Napolcom) not so much as
looking into the complaint properly," the source said.
None of the subject Napolcom officials could be reached for
comment yesterday afternoon. – Ashzel Hachero
