Basngi preparing to leave ICPO without regrets
Senior Supt. Dennis Basngi, who will soon be replaced as director of the Iloilo City Police Director, said yesterday he harbors no ill feelings over his looming relief.
“There’s no bad blood at all. Dumating na rin ako sa point na (I’ve reached the point that), I felt, to save the institution, you have to sacrifice and give up to give chance to others,” Basngi said.
Last week, Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog told reporters said he is already looking for someone to replace Basngi who fell short of his expectations when the ICPO failed to stop the crime trend in the city in recent months.
Basngi said he has no regrets accepting the post as ICPO chief following Senior Supt. Melvin Mongcal, who was also relieved by then Mayor Jerry Treñas following a turbulent stint.
He was named city police director by Mabilog last August after several months of sitting as officer-in-charge.
“I regret nothing. Trabaho lang ang sa akin (I just did my job). I could say that I have made my peace. Let others who have better ideas come and continue and further improve and develop what I had done,” he said.
Basngi said he already knows who will succeed him but he refused to name the official.
“We are just waiting for the procedures. It’s a public knowledge that I would be replaced,” he said.
Reasons
Asked about the reasons for his relief, Basngi said it might have something to do with his recent leave of absence.
“If they attribute that to minsan pag-alis, so be it. Minsan lang akong umalis, kalabisan na ba iyon? (I left only once, is it too much?) I don’t think so. And ibang opisyal nga every other week but because I’m a commander, I opted to stay here,” he said.
Basngi left Iloilo City on the evening of November 15 for a seminar of city directors all over the other country at the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame on November 17 to 19.
He asked for an extension of his leave from November 22 to 24, and informed Mabilog about it.
But Basngi said there are no excuses.
“If my people did not deliver, I take responsibility for that,” he said.
Past midnight of November 23, another taxi driver was robbed and killed by three minors who belong to the notorious True Brown Style 13 gang.
“Are they blaming me because I wasn’t here? Kung nandito ba ako, hindi nangyari yun? (If I were here, do you think it wouldn’t have happened?) ” he said adding, “Well, baka nga nakapagpatrolya at na prevent ‘yun kung nandito ako.”
Meanwhile, Basngi said that he has no idea where he will be reassigned.
“We go around and we explore. Who knows, if I could go back here, I’ll already have more knowledge to share to the people of Iloilo,” he said.*
