Tudela police say Baquerfo's accusations pure imagination

CEBU - Five policemen who were earlier accused by Tudela mayor Rogelio Baquerfo of cooperating with his archrival Demetrio Granada have finally answered the accusations against them.

In their collective counter-affidavit, SPO3 Edison Torres, desk officer; SPO1 Lito Estremos, jailer/alert; SPO3 Simplicio Montuerto, operative/desk officer; PO2 Luifran Plaza, jailer/intelligence; and PO1 Flordeliz Contratista, investigation/Women and Children’s Desk Officer said Baquerfo’s accusations are baseless and are “pure imagination.”

The police officers, through lawyer Christopher Ruiz, submitted their counter affidavit at the Office of the Ombudsman last September 22.

In their counter affidavit, they explained that Baquerfo’s allegations that they disobeyed, defied and went against his order being the incumbent mayor of the municipality lack factual and legal basis.

“His accusations against all of us cannot go beyond the ambit of law and it is only his pure imagination up to the limbo of his unpleasant memory that we are cooperating with Granada,” they said.

The five further said that as police officers, they have nothing to do with politics in the town and were only performing their mandate in maintaining the peace and order.

They also cited that none of them is a resident or a native of Tudela.

According to them, they had been in the police service for a long time already and had been performing their jobs within the bounds of law and even received commendations and awards for doing so.

“What may have offended the complainant was the fact that despite a letter from the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) urging Granada to vacate the Office of the Mayor, the latter continued to exercise his functions as Mayor,” the policemen said.

With this, the respondents urged the Office of the Ombudsman to dismiss the complaint for utter lack of cause of action or of probable cause. — Ferliza C. Contratista/WAB (THE FREEMAN)