BAGUIO CITY – The long wait for a permanent police chief is over after the Screening Committee selected by majority vote Acting City Director Senior Superintendent George D. Daskeo as the new City Director of the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO).
Four committee members voted in favour of Daskeo while two members voted for Senior Superintendent Jimmy Catanes of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) during the screening process undertaken by the committee created for the purpose late Monday afternoon.
Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan, who was the chair of the 7-member Screening Committee, did not cast his vote during the selection process that lasted for almost three hours considering that there was no tie between the aspirants that needs to be broken through his vote.
He explained that unlike in other areas in the country where the local chief executive simply selects from the shortlist submitted to him or her by the national headquarters, qualified applicants for BCPO City Director have to undergo a stringent process in relation to the evaluation of their performance and the results of the interview to be done by the committee members before voting is done.
Earlier, the PNP headquarters recommended five qualified senior police officers, namely, Daskeo, Catanes, Senior Superintendent Rolando Miranda, Senior Superintendent Edwin Rey Botacan and Senior Superintendent Albert Ocon, for the vacant BCPO position which was occupied by officers-in-charge for over two years.
However, only Daskeo and Catanes were able to make it to the screening process undertaken by the committee before the lapse of the 10-day grace period given by the PNP regional headquarters for the City Mayor to select a permanent BCPO chief.
The applicants were evaluated by the committee members based on a 5-point criteria pursuant to Administrative Order No. 052, series of 2016 which were availability (30 percent), performance (20 percent), program (20 percent), implementation (20 percent) and interview (10 percent).
Aside from Mayor Domogan, the committee members were Councilor Roberto C. Ortega, chairman of the city council committee on human rights, justice, peace and order and public safety, Assistant City Prosecutor Philip Randolph Kiat-ong, City Administrator Carlos M. Canilao, City Director Evelyn B. Trinidad of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, OIC City Human Resource Management Officer Edith Dawaten and Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club president Ramon S. Dacawi.
Daskeo’s endorsement as the permanent BCPO City Director was transmitted by the Selection Committee to the Police Regional Office in the Cordillera for the processing of his appointment.
The City Mayor’s Office received the shortlist of the qualified applicants for BCPO City Director last June 10, 2016 and the local chief executive was given ten days to select from the list of qualified applicants./Dexter A. See
