New Davao regional police chief assumes post amid failed Quiboloy arrest
Assumption of Office Ceremony of the Incoming Regional Director, PRO 11 PBGEN NICOLAS DELOSO TORRE III, together with PMGEN BENJAMIN H SILO, JR Commander Area Police Command Eastern-Mindanao at Pulis Bagani Hall, Camp Sgt. Quintin M Merecido Buhangin, Davao City. (Screengrab Police Regional Office 11/FACEBOOK LIVE)
DAVAO CITY — Police Brigadier General Nicolas Deloso Torre III, the new police director in the Davao region, formally assumed office on Sunday, aware of the challenges he was about to face, he told the media during the turnover of command at Camp Merecido in this city.
Torre replaced Brigadier General Aligre L. Martinez after the latter was relieved from his post barely 50 days after assuming office and three days following the June 10 operation that failed to arrest Pastor Apollo Quiboloy.
Torre, who arrived in this city from Manila around 9 a.m. on Sunday, accepted his new post during the turnover of command presided by Police Major General Benjamin Silo Jr., commander of the area police command of Eastern Mindanao.
“I’m fully aware of the challenges I will be facing here and in the aftermath of the controversies and issues we’ve witnessed the past week,” Torre told police officers and the media.
Martinez was relieved from his post on June 13, three days after the June 10 simultaneous police operations in five properties of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KJC) here, on Samal Island, Davao del Norte, and in Malungon town of Sarangani province to arrest Quiboloy, who faces child abuse, sexual abuse, and qualified human trafficking charges in Davao and Pasay city courts.
Article continues after this advertisementAside from Martinez, who is reassigned to the Police Holding and Accounting Unit under the Directorate for Personnel and Records Management in Camp Crame, 12 personnel of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Special Action Force were also relieved and reassigned to the Calabarzon area after the failed police operation.
Article continues after this advertisementTorre told the media that the arrest of Quiboloy would not be his main focus.
READ: PNP chief on Quiboloy arrest: We are working on it
“That’s not my center of focus now. There is a national headquarters that’s taking care of that,” said Torre, who, as head of the Quezon City Police District, implemented the “three-minute response time” requiring policemen to respond to crimes and other emergencies within three minutes after being informed.
He said he would try to replicate the concept here.
“(The Davao region), specifically Davao City, is the birthplace of 911, which has been replicated in the entire country,” he said. “What we’ve done in Quezon City was the three-minute response, and I’ll try to replicate it here,” Torre said.
Silo said Torre was chosen as the new regional director because of his extensive experience and dedication to duty. “At this time, our organization needs a leader who is adaptive and strategic in vision,” Silo said.
Torre said he was still waiting for orders about Quiboloy’s arrest from the headquarters. “I will wait for specific orders but right now, (I have to focus on the) PNP mission first. There’s no regional director here because of some administrative movements, a decision from the national headquarters, so I’m here as the regional director,” Torre said.
Torre, a former director of the PNP Communications and Electronics Service, is a member of the Philippine National Police Academy Tagapaglunsad Class of 1993. He was born in Jolo and was raised in Koronadal, South Cotabato. His first assignment was in Cotabato province.
