North Cotabato's new police chief urged to support peace initiatives

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines - Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza on Monday urged the new provincial police director, Senior Superintendent Alexander Tagum, to complement her peace initiatives in “tri-people” communities just as his predecessors did.

North Cotabato’s tri-people groups - Muslim, Christian and hinterland Lumad sectors make up the province's 17 towns and Kidapawan City, the provincial capital.

Tagum, who had earned more than 20 special citations and medals in recent years for his accomplishments as an operative of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, assumed last week as North Cotabato’s new police director.

Tagum replaced the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the provincial police, Senior Superintendent Noel Kinazo. They were classmates in the Philippine National Police Academy.

Mendoza told The STAR via mobile phone that she is confident Tagum can efficiently help in the peace-building activities of the provincial peace and order council.

Mendoza is the presiding chair of the inter-agency council, which has actively been supporting the peace overtures of President Benigno S. Aquino III with Mindanao’s indigenous groups.

Mendoza urged her constituent-mayors in North Cotabato to support Tagum’s law-enforcement activities, just the way they supported the operations of the provincial police office while under Kinazo.

Tagum earlier told reporters that he will focus on anti-narcotics operations in North Cotabato.

He said he will personally lead the rank-and-file personnel of the provincial police in a drug test meant to ensure no one from among the force is hooked to narcotics.

Tagum also promised to help push forward the governor’s domestic diplomatic programs complementing Malacañang’s Southern Mindanao peace process.