Blood on Torre’s Badge: How Malacañang’s Machinations Gutted the PNP

Torre’s 85-day reign ends in a political execution, with Bersamin’s pen as the murder weapon and the rule of law as collateral damage.

By Louis ‘Barok‘ C. Biraogo — August 31, 2025

IN THE gilded corridors of Malacañang, a vicious power grab has erupted, threatening to disembowel the Philippine National Police (PNP) and torch the rule of law. At the heart of this high-stakes drama is a cryptic 2023 letter from Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, a former Chief Justice turned palace hatchet man, that’s either a clarion call for clarity or a Molotov cocktail hurled into the PNP’s chain of command. The 85-day reign of former PNP Chief Nicolas Torre III lies in ruins, exposing a chasm in the Marcos Jr. administration so wide it could swallow the 230,000-strong police force whole. This isn’t a dry legal spat—it’s a palace intrigue thriller where ambition, betrayal, and statutory slaughter decide who wields the nation’s badge.

I. The Poisoned Letter: Bersamin’s Betrayal or Torre’s Trap?

Picture the scene: July 13, 2023. Bersamin, armed with the President’s seal, pens a letter that seems to crown Torre the unchallenged king of PNP personnel moves. It declares third-level officer designations—barring promotions—fall squarely under the PNP Chief’s iron fist, free from the National Police Commission’s (NAPOLCOM) bureaucratic claws. Torre, a reformist with a chip on his shoulder, takes it as divine mandate. He reshuffles his top brass, sending Deputy Chief Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. to Western Mindanao, convinced Malacañang’s got his back. Fast-forward to August 14, 2025: NAPOLCOM swings a scythe, nullifying Torre’s moves as “ineffective” for dodging their sacred review process (NAPOLCOM Resolution No. 2025-0531). Eighty-five days later, Torre’s ousted, his tenure the shortest in PNP history. Was Bersamin’s letter a well-meaning clarification or a cunning setup to let Torre overreach and implode? The ambiguity is a dagger, and Torre’s the one bleeding out.

II. Statutory Slaughter: The PNP Chief vs. NAPOLCOM’s Iron Grip

This is no petty memo war—it’s a gladiatorial bloodbath over statutory supremacy. Torre’s camp clings to RA 6975, Section 26, which arms the PNP Chief with the power to “direct and control… deployment, placement, utilization” of personnel. They argue Torre’s reassignments, free of promotions, needed no NAPOLCOM nod, especially with Bersamin’s letter and Marcos Jr.’s whispered assurances as backup. The Supreme Court’s Carpio v. Executive Secretary (G.R. No. 96409, 1992) bolsters their case, affirming the PNP Chief’s operational leash, though it sidesteps unilateral moves.

NAPOLCOM, however, brandishes RA 6975, Section 14, granting it “administrative control” over the PNP, including the power to review and reverse personnel decisions. RA 8551, the Philippine National Police Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998, tightens the screws, emphasizing NAPOLCOM’s role in keeping the PNP free from political taint. Their August 14 resolution didn’t just rap Torre’s knuckles—it voided his orders, citing internal rules demanding prior clearance. Canonizado v. Aguirre (G.R. No. 133132, 2001) is their trump card, reinforcing NAPOLCOM’s constitutional oversight against executive overreach. Torre’s refusal to comply? Insubordination, NAPOLCOM snarls. It’s a legal death match: Torre’s operational swagger versus NAPOLCOM’s bureaucratic stranglehold. The victor decides whether the PNP bows to a chief or a commission.

III. The Puppet Masters: Rifles, Arrests, and Political Payback

Forget the legal posturing—here’s the real dirt. Torre’s ouster wasn’t about paperwork; it was a political execution. Sources whisper he crossed sacred lines by refusing to greenlight a P8-billion assault rifle deal, deemed “excessive” for a civilian force (Manila Times, Aug. 30, 2025). Was this a principled stand under RA 6713‘s ethical code, or a fatal jab at powerful interests? Then there’s his role in the high-octane arrests of Apollo Quiboloy and Rodrigo Duterte, moves that won cheers from reformists but enemies in Duterte’s camp and among Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla’s allies. NAPOLCOM’s reversal wasn’t just legal—it was a hit job, orchestrated by unseen hands who saw Torre as a rogue knight.

Bersamin’s role is a riddle wrapped in a scandal. A former Chief Justice should’ve foreseen that a letter sidelining NAPOLCOM would spark a firestorm. Was he a chess grandmaster, setting Torre up to fall while shielding Marcos Jr.? Or a bumbling courier, outplayed by NAPOLCOM’s old guard? His signature on Torre’s relief papers reeks of damage control, a frantic scramble to mask the administration’s chaos. Either way, his legacy as a legal titan is teetering—how does a man of his stature author a memo that undermines the very commission he once upheld?

IV. The Body Count: Morale, Readiness, and a Shattered Rule of Law

This isn’t palace gossip—it’s a gut punch to the PNP’s 230,000 officers. Morale is cratering; rallies for Torre signal a force fractured by factionalism (Manila Times, Aug. 30, 2025). Operational readiness? Crippled. Torre’s five-minute response policy and anti-crime drives are now roadkill, leaving Filipinos exposed in crime-riddled streets. The rifle deal’s delay, while fiscally savvy, risks leaving officers outgunned, defying RA 6975‘s public safety mandate. Public trust in a neutral police force—already fragile—is crumbling. Studies tie politicized policing to heightened fear of crime; this saga’s a masterclass in distrust (Philippine Studies, 2023).

The rule of law is on life support. If Malacañang can bypass NAPOLCOM with a letter, the PNP risks becoming a political pawn, not a civilian force. Carpio warned against eroding civilian control, yet here we are, with executive flip-flopping threatening constitutional balance. Bersamin’s letter, if it subverted statutory process, mocks the separation of powers. Torre’s ouster, if fueled by vendettas over Quiboloy or rifles, spits on RA 6713‘s call for impartiality. This isn’t governance—it’s a blood sport, and Filipinos are the collateral damage.

V. Ethical Carnage: Heroes or Villains?

Torre and Bersamin are impaled on RA 6713‘s ethical spikes. Torre’s defiance of NAPOLCOM could be spun as devotion to duty—a chief fighting for operational control to protect the public. But it also reeks of insubordination, flouting Section 4’s demand for “justness and sincerity.” Bersamin’s letter, meant to clarify, instead sowed chaos, breaching the same code’s call for professionalism. His signing of Torre’s relief? Either a pragmatic move to restore order or a spineless dodge to evade accountability. Both men’s actions, however well-intentioned, have fueled perceptions of patronage and instability, the very demons RA 6713 seeks to exorcise.

VI. The Endgame: Bold Predictions and Non-Negotiable Demands

This saga’s far from its final act. Torre’s next move? A Rule 65 petition for certiorari, challenging NAPOLCOM’s resolution as grave abuse of discretion. Section 26 of RA 6975, which explicitly vests the PNP Chief with authority to “direct and control tactical as well as strategic movements, deployment, placement, [and] utilization of the PNP or any of its units and personnel,” is Torre’s legal Excalibur. This provision, enacted to ensure operational agility in a 230,000-strong force, arguably empowered him to reassign third-level officers like Nartatez without NAPOLCOM’s bureaucratic blessing, especially since no promotions were involved.

Bolstering this, Bersamin’s July 13, 2023 letter—penned as the President’s alter ego—declared that “future designations of third-level officials… are left to the authority of the PNP Chief, save for designations… that would entail promotions” (Manila Times, Aug. 30, 2025). Backed by Marcos Jr.’s alleged verbal assurances, this letter gave Torre not just legal cover but a perceived mandate from Malacañang itself. Together, Section 26’s statutory muscle and Bersamin’s executive nod give him formidable firepower to argue that NAPOLCOM’s August 14, 2025 resolution (NAPOLCOM Resolution No. 2025-0531) overstepped its bounds, trampling his lawful authority.

But Canonizado v. Aguirre (G.R. No. 133132, 2001) looms like a guillotine, with its deference to NAPOLCOM’s constitutional oversight role, threatening to sever his case. If he sues, expect a landmark ruling that rewrites the PNP’s power script. Or he could go rogue, blowing the whistle on the rifle deal and Duterte arrests to Congress or the press. It’s a gamble—RA 6713 sanctions loom—but it could crown him a reformist legend.

Bersamin’s on the ropes. Congress will likely drag him to testify on that letter, forcing him to either defend it as executive prerogative or disown it as a blunder. His smartest play is to broker peace—convene NAPOLCOM, DILG, and the PNP for a joint circular clarifying personnel rules. Silence is suicide; it’ll only fuel rumors of palace puppetry.

Here’s the ultimatum: Malacañang and NAPOLCOM must issue a public, unified directive by December 2025, spelling out which third-level moves need NAPOLCOM’s stamp and which don’t. No more questionable letters or backroom deals. Without this, the PNP’s chain of command is a sick joke, and public safety’s the punchline. Congress must also amend RA 6975 to carve a clear line between operational and administrative powers—statutory vagueness is a recipe for more mutinies.

VII. The Final Reckoning: A Nation at Stake

This isn’t just about Torre or Bersamin—it’s about whether the PNP serves Filipinos or the whims of palace schemers. The 230,000 officers deserve a clear chain of command, not a soap opera. The public deserves a police force that fights crime, not political wars. If this rift isn’t sealed, the rule of law bleeds dry, and the Philippines pays the ultimate price. The hounds are loose—let’s see who they devour first.