The Philippines needs a new “hard-hitting independent watchdog” against rampant police corruption and misconduct, Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel on Sunday said.
“The illegal drug trade in particular is clearly having a monstrous corruptive influence on police officers, and we must counteract this,” he said. “Our sense is, we need a tougher watchdog that can swiftly carry out administrative and criminal investigations of police wrongdoing without fear or favor.”
Pimentel is the vice chairperson of the good government and public accountability committee.
Recent House and Senate inquiries have put a spotlight on the alleged complicity of police officers in drug trafficking, including the theft of confiscated shabu supplies that are sold for cash and recycled back into the market.
At least 49 senior and junior officers, including a general and five colonels, have been implicated in the alleged whitewash of unlawful and unethical police actions during a controversial P6.7-billion shabu bust in Manila.
Pimentel said Congress must pass new legislation that would totally detach the Internal Affairs Service from the Philippine National Police (PNP).
“We should separate the IAS from the PNP, and put the service directly under the control of the Secretary of the Interior and Local Government,” he said.
“This way, the IAS can forcefully and freely operate without getting swayed by any consideration of the officers involved,” he noted.