2 Manila traffic officers relieved over alleged

Two officers of the Manila police Traffic Enforcement Group (TEG) were relieved from their posts yesterday for allegedly receiving "payola" from a "kotong" cop arrested Friday in the act of accepting P500 from a bus firm employee in Sampaloc.

Metro Manila police director Chief Superintendent Edgar Aglipay said Senior Inspector Feliciano Gubatan and Inspector Manuel Herrera would be discharged from the service once found guilty of accepting weekly payola money from "kotong" cop, SPO4 Lito Saquing.

Saquing was the 12th personnel of the PNP National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO) arrested for mulcting since PNP chief Deputy Director General Panfilo Lacson launched his campaign against "kotong" cops two months ago.

Gubatan, Sampaloc sector commander of the Manila TEG, and Herrera, assigned at the office of TEG Chief Superintendent Alex Castulo, were ordered relieved by Aglipay pending investigation of the charges against them.

They were both reassigned yesterday to the Headquarters Security Group (HSG) of the NCRPO in Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig.

Saquing was arrested Friday while receiving P500 in marked money from Liza Gali, accounting clerk of the Franco Bus company, in front of the bus terminal along Lacson st. in Sampaloc.

Aglipay said Saquing, during intense questioning , revealed that he gives part of his loot to Gubatan and Herrera.

Summary dismissal proceedings are now being readied against Saquing, said Aglipay.

Meanwhile, the office of Chief Superintendent Efren Fernandez, NCRPO deputy chief for administration is trying to speedily resolve 21 of the 29 cases of extortion charges filed against erring members of the NCRPO.

Fernandez is set to announce this week his final judgment on the cops' mulcting cases.

The other day, a Makati police officer was relieved from his post after allegedly demanding P5,000 from a popular department store in Makati for their station's fund for coffee.

Senior Superintendent Manuel Cabigon, chief of the Southern Police District (SPD), identified the relieved police officer as Chief Inspector Vicente Flores, chief of the Makati police Precinct 6.

Flores was relieved after he was monitored by Cabigon's plainclothes men asking for P5,000 from the security officer of Landmark Department Store in Makati City to fund his station's coffee supply.

Cabigon designated Senior Inspector Alejandro Abel, former chief of Precinct 1, to replace Flores.

He warned all police officers and members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) assigned in SPD to avoid extortion and other illegal activities. He said he would not hesitate to dismiss them from the service as his main objective is to rid the SPD of scalawags.