MANILA, Philippines – How did a law enforcer manage to continue engaging in illegal drug trade for a year without being caught or reported by his fellow policemen?
This is what Philippine National Police chief Gen. Ronald dela Rosa wants to know after finding out that Police Officer 1 Fernan Manimbo, ironically a member of the Anti-Drug Enforcement Unit of the PNP in Teresa, Rizal, was able to get off the hook.
“Sino may ideya sa inyo kung ano pinaggagagawa ng kasamahan n’yo? Hindi n’yo alam? Baka meron pa sa inyo na kasama niyan, itaas n’yo kamay n’yo,” the fuming Dela Rosa told Manimbo’s colleagues at the Teresa Police Station on Wednesday.
[Who has an idea of what your colleague is doing? You don’t know? If there is somebody from your group who is with him, raise your hand.]
Manimbo admitted to Dela Rosa that he had links with Amin Imam Baratong, a big time drug lord and leader of the Boratong Drug Matrix group and allegedly the operator of a shabu flea market in Pasig City.
But he also told the PNP chief that he was no longer trading illegal drugs.
“Tinanong ko kung bakit andaming shabu ibig sabihin tinanim yan sa’yo [I asked him why there was large quantity of shabu. Does that mean that it was planted on you]”? said Dela Rosa.
“Hindi daw sa kanya. So sino nagsasabi ng totoo? ‘Yong kinulong nahuli niya? Pinakamagandang alibi tinanim lang din ‘yan sa ‘kin,” the PNP chief added.
[He said it did not belong to him. So who is saying the truth? The one he had arrested and jailed? The best alibi is that it was just planted on him.]
Manimbo was arrested Tuesday night after he was caught delivering crystal meth or shabu in an area in Carissa 1 Subidivision, Barangay Bagumbayan in Teresa town.
Authorities were able to recover from Manimbo more than 100 grams of shabu worth P200,000.
But according to Manimbo he was just caught up in a police operation and he was ready to answer in court all the allegations being hurled at him.
“Naipit lang ako sa operation. Lahat ng ‘yan sasagutin ko na lang sa korte, yo’n lang po,” said Manimbo.
PNP-Rizal police chief Senior Supt. Albert Ocon said Manimbo had long been on the police list of high-value targets.
He claimed Manimbo was among the alleged protectors of drug pushers in Rizal. “Sila ‘yong mga protector ng mga pushers na ito.”
“May mga alaga sila na pushers and then sila rin ‘yong mga nagrerecycle ng mga nahuli natin na drugs,” added Ocon.
[They coddle pushers and they are also the ones recycling the drugs that we had recovered.]
Manimbo has been recommended for dismissal. The chief of the PNP-Rizal was terminated following Manimbo’s arrest.
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