Torre: Cop relief not planned

Newly appointed Philippine National Police chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III on Monday clarified that the relief of police officers who failed to meet the five-minute response time mandate was not originally planned.

"Wala hong plano na mag-relieve ha. Hindi plano yan, walang plano. Sa next assignments uli, 'pag sila ay hindi pa rin naka-deliever, ire-relieve naman natin (There were plans to relieve. That's not a plan. In their next assignments, if they could not deliver, we will relieve them again)," Torre told reporters in an ambush interview on Monday.

Torre lamented the need to comply with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive to the PNP to improve their response times to criminality.

He then expressed confidence in the PNP's ability to meet such a standard, citing past success as proof.

"The President directed us... He wants the police to respond within five minutes and I don't intend to fail on that because it has been proven that it can be done even in less than five minutes," Torre said.

He emphasized that police commanders must demonstrate strong leadership and fulfill their responsibilities with determination and accountability.

"Nasa commanders na lang iyan. Ngayon kung ang mga commanders natin hindi maka keep in step, hindi maka-comply—maghahanap ako ng commanders na makakapag-deliever sa promise na 'yan (That’s now up to the commanders. If our commanders can’t keep up or fail to comply—I will find commanders who can deliver on that promise)," Torre stressed.

8 NCR cops relieved

Meanwhile, Torre announced eight police chiefs in the National Capital Region were relieved from their posts due to non-compliance with the five-minute response time.

"We already relieved eight, and there will be more because I was there in Central Visayas yesterday in Iloilo and we issued a caution to the provincial directors,” Torre said in a separate ambush interview after the flag-raising ceremony at the Quezon City Hall on Monday.

Among the relieved chiefs of police were those assigned to Caloocan, Navotas, Valenzuela, Mandaluyong, Marikina, San Juan, Parañaque, and Makati.

No further details about them were disclosed.

Torre warned that more police officers could be relieved from their posts, while opportunities will be given to those who are qualified and capable of meeting the PNP’s standards.

"I want the entire NCR to comply with that. 'Pag hindi kayang gawin ng chief of police 'yon sa kanyang station--aalisin ko sila (If a chief of police can't do it in their station—they will be removed)," he said.

Torre said he had already spoken with the police regional directors to also comply with what he described as a "very simple directive of the chief PNP."

He said those who were relieved will be immediately replaced.

"Somebody will replace them, and for them to again assess their commitment to the directives of the chief PNP... That failure to pass the five-minute response test--very simple," he noted.

Heads will roll

Torre clarified that the directive focuses on monitoring public areas to reduce crime and prevent potential criminal activities.

He also reminded police officers that heads will roll in the coming weeks if the directive is not followed.

"Kayang gawin ng chief PNP iyan. Hindi ko iuutos kung hindi ko kayang gawin (The PNP chief can do it. I wouldn’t give the order if I couldn’t do it myself)," Torre emphasized, recalling that the Quezon City Police District successfully achieved it during his tenure as the unit's chief of police.

"Actually, the capabilities of other cities are the same as those in Quezon City. We saw that the commanders just don't have the drive, we removed them," he added.

Torre also clarified that police officers will still be required to explain any charges formally filed against them.

"I will wait for their explanations because that is necessary for them to explain themselves, because I'm filing cases against them," he said.