SEVEN governors and 132 mayors in Mindanao were stripped of their deputation by the National Police Commission for their alleged involvement in illegal activities, Napolcom Vice Chairman Rogelio Casurao said Tuesday.
He said the officials were relieved for engaging in acts inimical to national security or negate the effectiveness of the government’s peace-and-order campaign.
“The other two grounds for the suspension or withdrawal of the deputation of a local government executive are frequent unauthorized absences and abuse of authority,” Casurao said.
The officials’ relief was approved on June 8 this year.
Stripped of their deputation were Governor Esmael G. Mangudadatu and 28 mayors in Maguindanao; Governor Mamintal Adiong Jr. and 37 Mayors in Lanao del Sur; Governor Imelda D.C. Quibranza-Dimaporo and 22 mayors in Lanao del Norte; Governor Datu Pax S. Pakung Mangudadatu and 12 mayors in Sultan Kudarat; Governor Abdusakar A. Tan II and 13 mayors in Sulu; Governor Hadjiman Salliman and 10 mayors in Basilan; Governor Nurbert Sahali and nine mayors in Tawi-tawi; and Mayor Frances Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi of Cotabato City.
“Their deputation as Napolcom representatives in their respective areas of jurisdiction was suspended for their failure to impose measures to suppress terroristic acts and prevent lawless violence in their territories, which is inimical to national security and poses a serious threat to the lives and security of their constituents,” Casurao said.
“There were also reports of local chief executives in Mindanao being involved in the illegal drug trade, which is tantamount to providing support, in one way or another, to the Maute terrorist group or other criminal elements in their jurisdiction, an act which negates the effectiveness of the peace-and-order campaign in the country.”
Casurao said the ongoing conflict in Marawi compounded the security situation in Mindanao, and that led President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law on May 23, 2017.