(Eagle News) — Outgoing Philippine National Police Chief Ronald dela Rosa has confirmed part of the unreleased subsistence allowances for Special Action Force troopers during selected months from 2016 to 2018 has been returned.
Dela Rosa said it was Senior Supt. Andre Dizon, the SAF’s former budget officer, himself who returned the P37 million.
Dizon has been charged before the Ombudsman in connection with the non-release of the allowances from July 2016 to January 2018, except for the months of January 2016, and January to July 2017.
Apart from Dizon, charged were Police Director Benjamin Lusad, who was at the helm of the unit during that time; Senior Police Officer 2 Maila Bustamante; and Senior Police Officer 1 Jack James Irica of PNP-SAF Finance.
According to Police Director Noli Taliño, the current SAF director, the P10 million of the P37 million were returned on April 12.
The remaining P27 million were returned on April 16, he said.
He said it was unclear if money would still be returned because it was still not definite that the missing allowances amounted to P59.8 million.
Dela Rosa said, however, that the charges would still be pursued against Dizon, Lusad, Bustamante and Irica, who have been relieved from their posts.
Before their relief, Lusad was the chief of the PNP Directorate for Integrated Police Operations in Southern Luzon; and Dizon the Administrative and Resource Management Division chief of the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations in Southern Luzon. Mar Gabriel