Ang pinagpe-pray natin is, of course, makamit natin ang hustisya.’
(What we’re praying for, of course, is that we attain justice.)
Acting Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. answered this when asked if he was wishing for anything this Christmas in an interview with reporters after Camp Crame’s tree lighting ceremony on Wednesday night.
‘This is especially true now that our focus is the investigation being conducted by the ICI (Independent Commission for Infrastructure),’ he added.
Nine individuals were arrested last week, while seven remain at large. The 16 were accused of graft and malversation over their alleged involvement in the anomalous flood control project-the first batch of cases brought before the Sandiganbayan since the scandal broke out.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. previously vowed that the culprits behind the alleged corruption would be jailed by Christmas.
Apart from its service of arrest warrants against the accused, the PNP has been tapped by the ICI for technical support, particularly in ‘engineering verification, forensic validation, and information systems development.’
‘Transformation’
Nartatez further wished for a ‘transformation’ of the national police force.
‘The PNP can only serve well if we truly transform the Philippine National Police and expect that there will be honor,’ he explained.
‘The Philippine National Police will do everything it can to either eliminate or reduce crime, if it can’t be put down to zero. And if a crime is committed, it will arrest all involved as soon as possible, investigate them, and arrest them so that they can pay for what they’ve done,’ he added.
The top cop previously maintained that the national police force’s morale ‘remained high’ amid cases made against erring officers.
He touted that the agency’s internal cleansing drive has led to the dismissal of 428 personnel between Aug. 26 and Nov. 26, 2025.