Acting Negros Occidental Gov. Genaro Alvarez Jr.  yesterday said he will arrange a dialog between Escalante Mayor Melecio Yap and Senior Supt. Allan Guisihan, provincial police director, so differences over the relief of policemen from the city can be resolved for the good of the people of the city.

Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr., who is in Taiwan, will be back tomorrow so the dialog between Yap and Guisihan in his presence could be arranged, Alvarez said.

Chief Supt. Cipriano Querol, Western Visayas police regional director, ordered the relief of 12 Escalante policemen without consulting Yap, prompting the mayor to recall city government allocated equipment at the police station.

Yap said the city government withdrew its equipment at the Escalante police station on Saturday because the policemen who had signed the memorandum receipts for the items and are accountable for them, had been relieved.

Escalante Sanggunian members, angry at the withdrawal of the 12 policemen without consultation, passed on Monday resolutions withdrawing all of the city government’s support to the Philippine National Police, including the use of its building that houses the police station.

The Sanggunian also called on the Escalante City Legal Office to file a case against the regional and provincial police directors before the Regional Trial Court, to restrain them from relieving or transferring of the 12 policemen.

Alvarez said a dialog between the Escalante officials and the police leadership is needed to resolve differences for the sake of the residents of the city, whose security could be affected by the current situation.

Yap said he is ready for any dialog to be arranged by Alvarez, and pointed out that the PNP has been acting without consulting him.

Yap also denied reports, not in the DAILY STAR, that he had the Escalante police station padlocked. The police station is still open for use by the police, he said, adding that he is referring the recommendations of the Escalante Sanggunian for the city government’s withdrawal of all its support to the PNP, to the city legal officer for review before acting on it.*CPG

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