Duterte to appoint Albayalde as next top cop

FILE: Philippine National Police National Capital Region Police Office (Photo: PNP NCRPO)

The President announced that Police Director Oscar Albayalde  will be the next top cop of the Philippine National Police (PNP)

“I told Crame may bago tayong Chief PC (that we have a new police chief). I’m going to announce it now. It’s Albayalde,” President Rodrigo Roa Duterte said in the awarding of farmers and fishermen in Malacañang on April 5, Thursday.

Duterte said he asked people from Davao after mentioning two names for the PNP chief post.

“Sabi nila, ‘Yan sir, mahusay ‘yan, sir, mabait.’ Tinatanong ko, ‘si Albayalde?’ ‘Sir, masyadong istrikto ‘yan. ‘Yan si Albayalde ang inyo. Then Albayalde is the man for you.’ So the stricter the better. (‘They said, ‘Sir, he is great, kind.’ I asked, ‘Albayalde?’ ‘Sir, he is really strict.’ Albayalde is the man for you,’) the President narrated in his speech.

Albayalde is the incumbent National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) regional director and served as the chief of the Pampanga Provincial Police Office.

Incumbent PNP chief Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa is Albayalde’s batchmate at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Sinagtala Class of 1986.

Dela Rosa was supposed to leave his post last January 21 upon reaching his retirement age of  56 years old, but Duterte extended his term until April.

In late February, Duterte made another announcement saying that he plans to extend Dela Rosa’s term again.

(Read: Duterte extends Bato’s term as PNP chief anew)

“There are scoundrels, scalawag in every organization. That’s why the PNP [chief] now who is supposed to retire on 24th of April and because he enjoys my trust and confidence, I will extend his term for a little bit longer,” Duterte said.

The President did not specify how long Dela Rosa’s second extension will be, but a chance interview with Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea obtained the information that it will be about three more months.

Duterte also confirmed last December 2017 that he will appoint Dela Rosa as the next chief of the Bureau of Corrections.