PNP chief’s birthday wish: ‘To serve people better’

“To be able to serve better for the people yan ang wish natin kahit isang taon na lang tayo sa serbisyo (that’s my wish for my last year in service).” (PNA file photo by Joey O. Razon)

MANILA — Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said he wishes to serve the people better as he turns 55 on Thursday.

“To be able to serve better for the people yan ang wish natin kahit isang taon na lang tayo sa serbisyo (that’s my wish for my last year in service),” Albayalde told reporters during the regular Monday press conference where members of the PNP Press Corps surprised him with a birthday cake.

Albayalde, the PNP’s 22nd chief, will be retiring on Nov. 8, 2019 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.

Albayalde, born in San Fernando City, Pampanga, replaced Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa who retired in April.

Albayalde said his late father had the biggest influence on him, particularly when he entered the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) in 1982 after studying at the University of Assumption in Pampanga for two years.

He is an alumnus of the PMA Sinagtala Class of 1986, where he graduated cum laude.

He also holds a Masters’ degree in Public Administration at the Manuel L. Quezon University in Manila.

After graduating from the PMA, Albayalde became a member of the elite Special Action Force.

Albayalde also served as Pampanga provincial police chief, although he was relieved from post due to command responsibility after several of his men were found to be involved in illegal drug activities in Mexico town. The case against him, however, was dismissed.

He regained his credibility when he was appointed regional director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) in July 2016.

One of Albayalde’s “defining moments” is when he successfully led the 20,000-strong NCRPO, who were deployed to different venues, billets, airport, routes, and tours all over Metro Manila during the 31st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in 2017.

He would be seen roaming around and inspecting on board his big bike to make sure police forces are in place doing what they had to do.

Albayalde also made history when he relieved the entire police force of Caloocan City due to the involvement of several of its cops in irregularities, particularly in the killing of teenagers Kian delos Santos and Karl Angelo Arnaiz.

He assured that there will be no letup in helping “clean” policemen who are facing charges for doing their job.

Earlier, Albayalde urged the 190,000-strong PNP to work as a team and expect the police commanders to adapt his ways just like the conduct of surprise inspections in police stations.