ILOILO CITY , Philippines – It ended even before it began.

Chief Insp. Jovie Espenido’s stint as officer-in-charge of the Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) never took off, as Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) announced yesterday that Espenido’s assignment had been cancelled.

Chief Supt. Cesar Hawthorne Binag, Western Visayas police chief, said they received the order cancelling Espenido’s reassignment effective Sept. 1.

Binag said they also received instructions designating Senior Supt. Henry Biñas as Iloilo City police chief.

When asked about the sudden cancellation, Binag said he was not aware of the reason and cited command decision.

Pressed if the death of Richard Prevendido, Western Visayas’ top drug lord, had something to do wih the cancellation, Binag maintained that it is the national headquarters’ prerogative to assign personnel.

“As I’ve said, we welcome any officer who wanted to work with us, including Chief Inspector

Espenido. His experiences in the fight against illegal drugs could be of help in the PRO-6 campaign against all forms of criminality,” he said.

Early Friday, Espenido said that he had to delay his transfer to Iloilo City because he had one important job to do in Ozamiz City, which is to track down Ricardo “Ardot” Parojinog, the brother of slain Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog, and other members of the Ozamiz City crime group.

Ardot remains at large.

It was President Rodrigo Duterte himself who announced Espenido’s appointment to Iloilo on Aug. 28.

Before that, Duterte had repeatedly labeled Iloilo City as the “most shabulized,” the “bedrock of illegal drugs” (transshipment of illegal drugs in the Visayas), and Iloilo Ciy Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog as alleged drug protector.

The appointment did not sit well with several quarters since Espenido only holds the rank of chief inspector, which is two ranks lower than senior superintendent, the supposed rank for holding such a post.

Thus, under normal circumstances, Espenido could not be designated as city or provincial police director.

Under Republic Act 6975 (An Act Establishing the Philippine National Police under a Reorganized Department of the Interior and Local Government, and for Other Purposes), a city or provincial director is a third-level position.

As such, an officer who holds at least a senior superintendent (police colonel) rank should be designated.

If such law is to be the basis, Espenido could only be designated as chief of police of a town or component city, and not a chartered city as in the case of Iloilo City.

On Aug. 30, PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa announced Espenido’s designation following the sudden relief of Iloilo City police chief Senior Supt. Remus Zacharias Canieso.

Canieso was later was promoted to a higher post as the PRO-6 chief directorial staff.

Unlike Espenido, Biñas holds the rank appropriate to the post.

He is the outgoing director of the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office, a post he held since Oct. 3, 2016.

Prior to that, Biñas was chief of the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division of PRO in Central Visayas.

Dela Rosa could not be reached for comment. PNP spokesman Chief Supt. Dionardo Carlos had confirmed Biñas’ designation but did not provide other details.

Dela Rosa earlier said he was having second thoughts on reassigning Espenido as the situation in Ozamiz has yet to stabilize after the killing of Parojinog, members of the family and associates.

Espenido could not be reached for comment but in a previous interview with reporters, he isaid he is not rushing to his next assignment since he still has some unfinished business in Ozamiz where he is the police chief.

He said they have yet to account for Ardot Parojinog, incumbent councilor of Ozamiz, said to be involved in illegal activities and still at large.

Aside from Ardot, one of the mayor’s nephews and leader of the Martilyo Gang, whom he did not identify, remains at large.

President Duterte, impressed with Espenido’s accomplishments in the anti-drug campaign, ordered that he be reassigned to Iloilo City where the local chief executive, Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog, is said to be involved in illegal drugs.

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) yesterday said that they have no recent record of Ricardo Parojinog leaving the country.

BI spokesperson Ma. Antonette Mangrobang said that based on their records, “The name Ricardo Parojinog’s last arrival is 4 November 2015 and no record of departure yet.”

Parojinog reportedly arrived from Beijing, China on Nov. 4, 2015 on board China Air’s flight CA179.

Duterte had also increased the bounty for Ardot Parojinog’s arrest to P5 million. He also urged soldiers to help in the hunt.

The BI though could not guarantee that Ardot is still in the country since the Philippines has porous borders and it has been difficult to secure the country’s 36,289-kilometer long coastline.

Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II last Aug. 4 issued an Immigration Lookout Bulletin against Parojinog, who reportedly also uses the alias “Arthur Parojinog.”

His inclusion in the BI’s lookout bulletin reportedly stemmed from the simultaneous raid conducted by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) at the properties of the Ozamiz City mayor last July 30.

Ardot was reportedly not at home when the PNP-CIDG searched his house, where they reportedly found several firearms and ammunitions.

With Emmanuel Tupas, Evelyn Macairan