Rama asks Crame to replace Garbo

CEBU, Philippines -Mayor Michael Rama will formally ask Camp Crame and Malacañang on Monday to replace Police Regional Office (PRO)-7 Director Marcelo Garbo for abuse of power.

 The mayor met with his lawyer-friends at the Cebu City Hall yesterday noon where they also discussed the case that Rama wants to file against the top police official in Central Visayas.

 Among those who attended the closed-door meeting were City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete, the mayor's cousin-lawyer Ernesto Rama and lawyer Jade Ponce.

Rama said he will write letters asking Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Allan Purisima, President Benigno Simeon Aquino III and Vice President Jejomar Binay to relieve Garbo from his post and designate a competent official to replace him.

The mayor is angry with Garbo's move of sending several uniformed policemen at the Capitol Compound because this might create a bad image for Cebu City.

He said there is no need to send several troops to the Capitol and make the place look like a garrison because there was no trouble there, and being the mayor of the city, he should have been informed about it.

According to the mayor, he is given the authority to supervise and control the policemen being a deputy of the National Police Commission, but Garbo just ignored his power, which is provided for by the law.

But Rama's number one critic, Cebu City South District Rep. Tomas R. Osmeña, was quick to defend Garbo: "Rama is entitled to make a fool of himself."

Osmeña said Garbo was just responding to a possible disturbance when acting governor Agnes Magpale ordered the office of suspended governor Gwendolyn Garcia closed.

"Since when is a police officer supposed to ask the mayor permission to do his job? The public knows that Rama is biased politically towards Gwen. To me, his statement is just making 'sip-sip' to Gwen. Is Rama running out of supporters? How low can he go?" Osmeña said.

 Republic Act 8551 or the PNP Law defines the term "operational supervision and control" given to the mayor as "the power to direct, superintend, and oversee the day-to-day functions of police investigation of crime, crime prevention activities, and traffic control in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by Napolcom."

The law further provides that other powers of the mayor over their policemen include the "power to direct the employment and deployment of units or elements of the PNP, through the station commander, to ensure public safety and effective maintenance of peace and order within the locality."

Garbo said Rama has the right to file charges against him, but said that the deployment of police personnel at the Provincial Capitol was a standard procedure and based on the order of the acting governor.

Garbo said he is not obliged to inform the mayor of the order the police received, which was about the padlocking of the office of suspended governor Gwendolyn Garcia.

"Maybe it's not me to inform him. I am not under any mayor or any governor," said Garbo.

With regards to Rama's request to have him replaced, Garbo said the mayor can ask it from the hierarchy of the Department of Interior and Local

Government and from President Aquino himself.

Garbo reiterated that the PNP is apolitical and he himself is not a political personality.

"As much as possible, I want to shy away from this kind of environment for me to protect our organization and the regional director of PRO 7. I wouldlike to isolate the police from political fighting, iyon po ang objective natin dito. Ours is to preserve and protect, maintain peace and order," Garbo added.(FREEMAN)