Outgoing PNP chief dela Rosa will face any charges against him

Outgoing Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa said on Wednesday, April 18, that he will be facing any charges to be filed by his critics against him over deaths in the government’s drug war once he leaves the police force. (Photo: Philippine National Police/Facebook)

Outgoing Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa said on Wednesday, April 18, that he will be facing any charges to be filed by his critics against him over deaths in the government’s drug war once he leaves the police force.

Dela Rosa, who is set to end his nearly two-year stint as PNP chief, assured that he would not try to run away from the accountability for all the issues that happened under his watch as he was trained at the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) to take responsibility of his actions.

Saying that he does not want to put his alma mater in shame, the top cop told CNN Philippines The Source, “Kaya sabihin ko sa inyo, sa lahat. Ako po ay may bayag (I tell you all, I have the balls), I have the balls to face anything that you are going to charge against me.”

“Bakit ko tatakbuhan ‘yung responsibilidad (Why would I try to escape from the responsibility)? If it happened during my time as the chief PNP, I am accountable for that,” he added.

The PNP chief earlier expressed his readiness to face a possible wave of charges linked to the thousands of killings on the anti-illegal drug campaign.

Dela Rosa, who led the controversial drug crackdown, stressed on Tuesday that he would not desert President Rodrigo Duterte, whom he said gave him the biggest break of his uniformed career.

The top cop further said that he did not regret any decisions he made during his 21-month term as PNP chief, considering the administration’s drug war a success under his command.

Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch (HRW) Asia Division researcher Carlos Conde on the same day said dela Rosa “may be held to account for the bloody campaign he so zealously endorsed.”

He added that the top cop will leave behind a police force “with a sordid human rights record unmatched since the Marcos dictatorship.”

“As police chief, dela Rosa deployed the forces that have waged President Rodrigo Duterte’s murderous ‘war on drugs.’ That campaign has targeted mainly urban slum dwellers and resulted in the deaths of more than 12,000 men, women, and children by police and police-backed vigilantes,” Conde noted.

As he will be stepping down from his post tomorrow, April 19, dela Rosa will be turning over his position to outgoing National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) regional director Oscar Albayalde, who is also his batchmate in the PMA Sinagtala Class of 1986.