The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Friday sought to silence the whispers that Gen. Nicolas Torre III was eased out as Philippine National Police (PNP) chief over a controversial P8-billion firearms deal tucked into the police force’s 2026 budget.

“There are allegations the reorganization at the Philippine National Police was due to Gen. Nicolas Torre’s refusal to carry out the supposed instructions of Secretary Jonvic Remulla to purchase firearms. This claim is false,” the DILG said in a statement.

However, documents obtained by DAILY TRIBUNE pointed to an unsigned proposal Torre allegedly refused to endorse — a Request for Endorsement and Budget Support that sought funding for 80,000 new assault rifles.

The memo justified the request as critical for the PNP’s Firearms Capability Enhancement, citing the police force’s expanding role in internal security operations as the military shifts to external defense.

“The shift in operational landscape has exposed critical gaps in our force readiness, most notably in firepower capability,” the memo said, adding the purchase “aligns with national priorities on peace and order, public safety and territorial integrity.”

The DILG, however, dismissed the document as fabricated.

It insisted that Remulla had merely asked Torre to assess the necessity of the unsolicited proposal, reminding him that the purchase could only materialize via a congressional insertion — not under the National Expenditure Program.