NAPOLCOM wants zero backlog on cases vs erring cops

MANILA, Philippines — The National Police Commission yesterday vowed to achieve zero backlog in the number of administrative cases against members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) pending before the Napolcom by the end of the year.

At a press conference, Napolcom vice chairman Rafael Calinisan admitted that thousands of cases have been pending before the commission for years.

“In fact, the other day, we resolved a case pending for 18 years and the other one, for 21 years. I am now part of the commission. I cannot point fingers. What we will do now, since I am now the head of Napolcom as vice chairman and executive officer, we will clear all of this,” Calinisan said.

At the same time, he said the involvement of 15 members of the Valenzuela City police, including the chief investigator, in robbery-extortion was not an isolated case.

“I am very sad, bordering on anger, as this is not an isolated case. There must be reforms in the current setup of the PNP,” Calinisan said.

Three of the officers were arrested in an entrapment operation conducted by the PNP-Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group (IMEG) as well as other PNP units in Barangay Malinta on Wednesday.

“My instruction is to have zero backlog by December 2025. Our plan is, 60 days from the filing of the complaint, a decision should be issued. Justice must be rendered for both the complainant (and) the respondent. If you are innocent, your case will be finished. But if you are guilty, you will be removed from the service. It goes both ways,” he added.

He said the Napolcom is also reviewing the recruitment process of the PNP.

“Maybe there is something that we are missing. What we are looking into are two things. Is it a neuro-psychological problem? Is there something wrong with the process? Then we will make it stricter,” he said.