EMBATTLED NATIONAL POLICE Chief Oscar Albayalde, who was accused of recycling confiscated meth six years ago, has resigned Monday from his post barely a month before his retirement.
Albayalde’s deputy, Archie Gamboa, is now the officer-in-charge of the national police force. Albayalde previously said that he will not step down from his post as he strongly denied all allegations against him by former police officials.
“I leave my fate to the decision of the President,” said Albayalde before he announced his resignation.
Former police officer and now Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong and retired police officer Rudy Lacadin were among those who implicated Albayalde during a senate investigation into the involvement of policemen in recycling of meth confiscated from drug lords.
“I question the timing of this attack and smear campaign against me. Until now, despite the Senate hearings conducted, no hard evidence was ever presented showing that I was involved in that drug raid in Pampanga in 2013. All statements made remain allegations, insinuations, and unsubstantiated,” Albayalde said.
Albayalde was then the chief of police of Pampanga province. Lacadin, then with the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, even said that at one time, Albayalde phoned him to inquire about an investigation into a dozen policemen implicated in the illegal drug trade.
He denied the accusation of Lacadin, who was a franchisee of his water refilling business in 2011. “Lacadin has a lot of explaining to do and he will have his day in court. All those police officials ganging up on me have ill motives against me and obviously all worked with the previous administration,” Albayalde said.
Last week, Duterte also defended Albayalde, saying, he has to follow due process on deciding on the fate of Albayalde. “I have to follow procedural due process and allow him time to answer, the right to be heard. It’s given to the criminals, to the kidnappers. It should be given to a general of the Philippine National Police because under the laws we’re all equal,” he said, adding, the most proper thing to do is to let Interior Secretary Eduardo Año to finish a parallel investigation into the allegations separate from the senate probe.
“Secretary Año will study the matter very carefully. Give me clear proof he was there on the take or was in the trafficking of drugs. But just because he was (then Pampanga police chief), tapos may tinawagan siya…I could not just do it in a knee-jerk (reaction),” Duterte said. (Mindanao Examiner)
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