PNP chief assures due process for cop in brush with PNoy convoy

The Philippine National Police on Wednesday evening reassured due process for a Quezon City policeman who figured in a brush with the convoy of President Benigno Aquino III last Tuesday. PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome said that while he ordered the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) to speed up its probe, it must also get the side of SPO1 Ricardo Pascua. “Kausap ko si (QCPD head Chief Superintendent Mario) dela Vega, upang sa ganoon sabi ko mapabilis ang pagimbestiga dito. Tapusin ninyo agad, ang dapat ipataw ay ipataw (pero) kailangan due process ang ating gawin para makuha ang side ni SPO1 Pascua," Bartolome said in an interview on dzBB radio. On Tuesday, dela Vega relieved Pascua from his post for not making way for the convoy of President Aquino in Quezon City. Dela Vega cited initial reports reaching him indicating Pascua even introduced himself as a policeman when approached by a presidential guard. Pascua apologized for his action but insisted he could not have known it was Aquino’s convoy behind him supposedly because he did not see blinkers. Aquino had shunned the use of blinkers and sirens since he took his oath of office in 2010. “Nasenyasan naman siya. Hindi naman nagwa-wangwang ang pangulo. Alam nating lahat na ang pangulo dapat mabigyan ng full security coverage,” Bartolome said. For his part, PNP spokesman Chief Superintendent Generoso Cerbo Jr. admitted there may be no timetable for them to complete the investigation. “Hindi natin mabigyan ng timetable. Karaniwan naman sila may legal relief, minsan kumukuha sila sariling abogado. Ang pangako natin di natin ito tatantanan up to its successful conclusion," he said in a separate interview on dzBB. — LBG, GMA News