MANILA, Philippines - The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) is seeking the help and cooperation of local government units (LGUs) to dismantle city and municipal hall detachments, sometimes called “mayor’s squads” in Metro Manila.
NCRPO chief Director Roberto Rosales has issued a memorandum to his five district directors to coordinate with their respective mayors in dismantling the police detachments in their areas of responsibility.
Rosales gave the district directors a deadline of up to the first week of January in carrying out their task.
“It is the LGUs who have jurisdiction over these city and municipal hall detachments and their cooperation would mean a lot in our effort to carry out our tasks,” said Rosales in an interview.
Earlier, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Jesus Verzosa ordered the dismantling of city and municipal hall detachments to level the playing field among candidates in the coming May elections.
Reports reaching Verzosa showed that incumbent politicians are allegedly using police officers at city and municipal detachments to conduct raids or harass political rivals.
Verzosa’s order will be one of the topics to be discussed by Rosales during his command conference today at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City to be attended by his five district directors and 37 station commanders.
Politicians are also using these so-called “mayor’s squad” in collecting weekly bribes from gambling lords, illegal vendors and others involved in illegal activities and rackets, according to Verzosa.
Rosales said all personnel of the city and municipal hall detachments in Metro Manila should be downloaded to police stations for added police visibility in the streets.
He warned that police officials and enlisted men who continue reporting to city and municipal hall detachments after the January deadline will be relieved and reassigned to holding centers of the five police districts.
Rosales is hoping that the LGUs would comply with Verzosa’s directive as “the PNP has no other agenda in mind but to push for the peaceful holding of the coming May election.”