Euro generals return hot cash to PNP coffers

By Gina Peralta-Elorde

10/31/2008

The eight senior officers of the Philippine National Police (PNP) tagged as the “Euro generals” after they figured in a controversy involving their delegation’s having brought an excessive amount of cash supposedly to be used as contingency funds while attending a conference of officials of the international police in Moscow, Russia have started returning the money they took from the PNP’s intelligence fund.

In a press conference at Camp Crame, PNP spokesman, Chief Supt. Nicanor Bartolome said Director Silverio Alarcio, PNP Director of Operations, and Director German Doria, Director for Human Resources and Doctrine Development, were the first of the eight-man PNP delegate to the recent 77th International Police General Assembly to return the cash they received as purported “pocket money” for the international gathering.

Each of the members of the delegation were reportedly given P274,070 by the PNP finance department for them to purportedly use as contingency funds during the Russian trip. The money was considered by the department as “cash advances.”

Bartolome said Alarcio returned the P274,070 intact, while Doria gave P100,000 as partial amount. Bartolome, though, said Doria gave a promissory note to the PNP finance department vowing to pay the remaining balance within 30 days.

He said the other six officers also promised to return the amount they got either by installment or full payment starting today.

Bartolome noted that the acts of the concerned officers stemmed from an order issued out by PNP chief Director General Jesus Verzosa for them to return the “cash advance” they received in preparation for an audit set to be conducted by the Commission on Audit of the monies.

“If the members of the delegation could justify the expenses they made out of the cash advance, then they could later request for a reimbursement after they made justification,” Bartolome further said.

At the same press conference, Doria said the money was given to them for them to be able to purchase plane tickets, pay for hotel expenses, airport terminal fees and other miscellaneous items. The amount also included a per diem (daily) allowance during their stay in Russia, he added.

“Since the start, I had thought of our travel as lawful and legal because we received the order from no less than the chairman of the Napolcom (National Police Commission), for us to travel and attend the Interpol general assembly,” he maintained.

Doria, however, admitted that some of them violated a provision under PNP regulations banning senior police officers with less than one year from the police service from traveling abroad on official mission. He though said it was a case of “oversight” on their part.

But Doria said the P274,070 was not part of the 105,000 Euros (equivalent to P6.9 million) that was confiscated by Russian authorities from PNP comptroller, retired Gen. Eliseo Dela Paz, who was acting disbursing officer of the PNP delegation.

He also said it was Supt. Samuel Rodriguez who released the P274,070 for each member of the delegation.

Rodriguez was among those recommended by Verzosa to be charged administratively and criminally for possible involvement in the illegal disbursement of PNP funds in connection with the Moscow controversy.

The three others were Dela Paz; Chief Supt. Orlando Pestano, head of the PNP Finance Service; and Senior Supt. Tomas Rentoy, Budget Division chief of the Directorate for Comptrollership.

Verzosa ordered the PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to file the charges as recommended by Chief Supt. Raul Bacalzo who conducted an investigation on the alleged fund misuse.

After it broke out in public prompting a Senate inquiry, Verzosa ordered a separate investigation into the suspected attempted misuse of the police establishment’s intelligence funds by the delegation to the Moscow meeting, headed by Dela Paz.

Last Monday, the PNP chief ordered the eight active duty officials to return the entire amount they received from the PNP finance department.

Dela Paz has promised to return the money he got while Deputy Director General Emmanuel Carta and the rest are expected to return theirs on Monday.

Bartolome said the eight police officials have started submitting the necessary papers for liquidation of their expenses.

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