Raps poised vs Mancao for campaigning for Ping

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) is filing administrative and criminal charges next week against one of a dozen police officers who were investigated for allegedly openly campaigning for the senatorial bid of former Philippine National Police chief Panfilo Lacson.

Chief Superintendent Nestorio Gualberto, CIDG director, said they have, so far, strong evidence against Senior Superintendent Cesar Mancao, former Luzon chief of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF), which Lacson used to head.

Mancao was tagged by several police witnesses as allegedly one of the organizers of Lacson’s campaign rally in Davao last Feb. 24.

Mancao, who went on official leave, allegedly threw his weight around police officers in Southern Mindanao (Region 11), when he distributed Lacson’s campaign materials.

PNP chief Deputy Director General Leandro Mendoza said charges of electioneering or violation of Republic Act 7166, or the Omnibus Election Code are also being readied against Chief Superintendents Gregorio Dolina (Southern Mindanao), Tiburcio Fusillero (Central Visayas), Dominador Domingo, Jose Ayap (Ilocos), Reynaldo Acop and Renato Paredes (Traffic Management Group); Directors Vic Batac and Romeo Acop; Senior Superintendent Michael Ray Aquino; Superintendents Diosdado Valeroso and Pedrito Reyes, and the police chiefs of the cities of Zamboanga and Cebu who allegedly provided Lacson with police escorts.

Mendoza ordered Gualberto to speed up their investigations into these police officers, four of whom — the Acop brothers, Zubia and Batac — have gone on leave.

Mendoza quoted local Comelec authorities as saying that these police officers were monitored to have taken part in Lacson’s convoys during his campaign sorties in Northern Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

He cautioned other police personnel to leave or resign from the police service if they want to engage in partisan politics, or else face stiff administrative and criminal sanctions.

"The law is very clear on this. Existing regulations of the PNP National Police Commission are also very specific," he said.

"There is only one political activity that a policeman is allowed to do — and that is to cast his vote. Anything beyond that is already considered electioneering, tantamount to grave misconduct under PNP rules," he added.

Gualberto said they have expanded their probe to include other men in uniform who have reportedly allied with or offered their services to certain politicians.