BAGUIO CITY - To rid its ranks of erring members, the Philippine National Police (PNP) has dismissed 63 police officers assigned in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) between 2016 and 2021. Capt. Marnie Abellanida, Police Regional Office-Cordillera (PROCor) information officer, in a phone interview on Tuesday said those dismissed had different ranks whose offenses ranged from frequent unauthorized absences to grave misconduct. He said one of the dismissed was a police captain while the rest were non-commissioned police officers with the ranks of police executive master sergeant and the lowest rank of patrolman. The PNP is directly under the supervision of the National Police Commission (Napolcom) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government. Abellanida said aside from the policemen, 10 civilian employees or non-uniformed policemen (NUP) in the PNP have been dismissed from service. He said they are part of the 5,652 personnel of the PNP who were dismissed from service due to various offenses from 2006 to present. He added that based on the record of the Regional Personnel Records Management Division, three police officers were fined, 14 were demoted, 150 police officers and three NUP were suspended, 136 were reprimanded, while 13 were meted with the withholding of privileges. He said the number is proof that the organization does not condone law breakers. He said the leadership of the PROCor also wants to sustain the brand in 2019 for being the "Home of Most Disciplined Cops." "To ensure the discipline of PROCor Cops, our regional director, BGen. [Ronald Oliver] Lee is working closely with the Regional Internal Affairs Service, PNP Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group and Napolcom-Cordillera in carrying out the Internal Cleansing Program of the PNP," Abellanida also said. He also said the regional director is regularly visiting and inspecting the different police provincial offices to check the welfare and situation of the ground personnel. Oliver has ordered the regular and frequent random drug testing among commissioned and non-commissioned officers, especially those assigned at their drug enforcement units, Abellanida said. In the last random drug testing in five provinces of the region this month, none of the more than 200 police officers tested positive for illegal drugs. (PNA) }