“Unfair” was how Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla described former election commissioner Rowena Guanzon, suggesting that law enforcement on Tuesday dismissed criticism over the P10-million reward offered for information leading to the arrest of businessman Charlie “Atong” Ang.
Guanzon earlier said authorities already know Ang’s whereabouts and that the reward could simply be pocketed.
“That’s a very unfair statement. If I had known that, it would have been in my interest to have him arrested immediately. Why would I create such drama?” Remulla said.
He added that he authorized the reward money and that it was funded by his office, noting that delaying Ang’s arrest would run counter to his own interests.
Police, he said, have conducted several operations based on intelligence reports.
3 raids in 2 days
“We have conducted three raids in the past two days, all of which yielded negative results,” he said, as authorities remain active in pursuing Ang, with more operations planned in the coming days.
Remulla said tracking down a fugitive with substantial financial resources is harder, but the government will use all its resources to capture him.
“He has a lot of money, but his resources cannot match those of the entire government,” he said.
Remulla added there are also “no indications” that Ang, who is now a fugitive, had already left the country, as they have already flagged him to Interpol.