Ex-PNP chief Acorda on alleged Pogo ties: I love my country and the PNP

Sen. Risa Hontiveros presents an undated photo of former Philippine National Police chief Benjamin Acorda Jr. (third from left) and Chinese businessman Tony Yang (second from left) during a Senate hearing on Tuesday.

MANILA, Philippines — In response to his photos with several personalities linked to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), former Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Retired General Benjamin Acorda Jr. expressed his love for both the country and the police force.

“Masasabi ko lang, I love my country and the PNP organization. Kung anong dapat gawin ng isang Pilipino at bilang police officer ay ginawa ko,“ Acorda said in a short text message send to reporters on Wednesday.

(All I can say is that I love my country and the PNP organization. I did everything a Filipino and a police officer should do.)

READ: Ex-PNP Chief Acorda’s photos with Pogo figures bared in Senate probe

The former PNP chief’s statement came after Sen. Risa Hontiveros presented photos showing him along with Yang Jian Xin, also known as Tony Yang, and two others during a Senate committee on women’s hearing on Tuesday.

Yang is the elder brother of businessman Michael Yang, who served as the economic adviser to then-President Rodrigo Duterte.

One of the photos Hontiveros showed was taken back when Acorda was still the regional police director of Northern Mindanao.

READ: Acorda retires from PNP after 3 months of extended service

Meanwhile, Sual, Pangasinan Mayor Dong Calugay — who was implicated in the Senate probe due to his alleged ties with Bamban Mayor Alice Guo — admitted to knowing Acorda but clarified that the photo was taken during a visit to the retired general, who was formerly the police chief of Sual.

Last week, the upper chamber’s investigation on Guo’s case revealed that a former national police chief reportedly helped the dismissed mayor escape the country, as claimed by state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. Senior Vice President of Security and Monitoring Cluster Retired General Raul Villanueva.

Villanueva on Tuesday apologized to former Philippine National Police chiefs and clarified that his exposé was just “hearsay”.

The former mayor left the country on July 18 despite the arrest order issued by the Senate over her failure to attend hearings on her alleged ties to illegal Pogos.

Another warrant of arrest was also issued by the Tarlac Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 109 against Guo for reportedly violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act last September 5. This case was transferred from the Tarlac RTC to the Valenzuela RTC.

Guo was arrested in Jakarta by Indonesian authorities on September 4. She was deported back to the Philippines on September 6.