MANILA – Controversial Police Lieutenant Colonel Jovie Espenido, the sacked deputy director for operations of the Bacolod City Police Office, is not yet off the hook.
Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said President Rodrigo Duterte did not exonerate Espenido – who was included in the latest government narco list – despite saying the latter was “clean” and speculating that there is a smear campaign to derail the government’s war on drugs.
The President’s statements should also not influence the Philippine National Police’s investigation on Espenido, said Panelo, as the Chief Executive’s views on the police official could change if “credible evidence” is presented.
“Kung
papakitaan siya (Duterte) ng mga bagong ebidensya na nagpapakitang involved siya (Espenido) eh di ibang usapan ‘yun,” Panelo said. “The President always relies
on the presumption of innocence of all people unless you show him na hindi.”
Espenido was among the 357 police officers under investigation over alleged
drug links. He had previously earned praise from Duterte for his contributions
to the campaign against illegal drugs.
Earlier yesterday, Department of Interior and Local Government secretary Eduardo Año said Espenido’s name should have been removed from the “narco list” given the police officer’s past validations and his efforts in the governmen’’s war on drugs.
“’Yung mga nakaraang validation, siguro dapat na-clear na siya. I don’t know bakit naging mabagal ‘yung validation of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD),” said Año yesterday.
The secretary revealed that Espenido was included in the drug watch list in December 2016 yet.
“Yung
pinamalas niya na paglaban sa droga doon sa
Ozamiz City, napakalaking factor ‘yun para mag-serve in his favor,” Ano
added, referring to Espenido’s anti-illegal drugs operation against the
Parojinog clan in Ozamiz City in 2017.
Espenido was also the police chief of Albuera, Leyte when the town’s then mayor
Rolando Espinosa, a drug suspect, was shot dead inside his jail cell in 2016 in
a police operation to serve a search warrant.
Espenido was removed from Bacolod City some two weeks after describing the metro as “shabulized”.
“Panay ang huli ng pulis…Marami palang drugs,” said Espenido.
Aside from being the deputy director for operations of the Bacolod City Police Office, Espenido also headed the City Drug Enforcement Unit – for only three months since October 2019 when he was assigned to Bacolod City.
Even as Espenido tagged Bacolod City “shabulized”, he expressed confidence that “everything has an end.”
“Mabenta daw dito…very easy magbili ng drugs. Tingnan natin kung hanggang kailan,” said Espenido./PN
