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Royina Garma

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In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Marzan and the surname or paternal family name is Garma.

Royina Garma
Garma in 2024
General Manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office
In office
July 15, 2019 – June 30, 2022
PresidentRodrigo Duterte
Succeeded byMelquiades Robles
Personal details
Born
Royina Marzan Garma

1972 or 1973 (age 51–52)
Cagayan Valley, Philippines
SpouseRoland Vilela (annulled)
Children1 (adoptive)
Alma materPhilippine National Police Academy
Police career
ServicePhilippine National Police
DivisionCriminal Investigation and Detection Group
Police office
Service years1998–2019[1]
RankPolice Colonel[2]

Royina Marzan Garma is a retired police officer and government official.

She is a long-time police officer in Davao City and later in Cebu City from 2018 until her retirement in 2019. Garma was the general manager of state-run Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office from 2019 to 2022. Garma is known to be a close associate of Rodrigo Duterte.

Education

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Garma attended high school at the Saint Louis College of Tuguegarao graduating in 1990. She obtained a bachelor's degree in mathematics at the Cagayan Colleges Tuguegarao in 1995.[1] She attended the Philippine National Police Academy graduating from the institution in 1997.[3] Garma obtained a masters degree in education management from the Rizal Memorial Colleges in 2007 and an executive doctorate degree in leadership at the University of Makati in 2019.[1]

Career

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Police career

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Davao City and CIDG

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Garma was a long-time officer of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Davao City.[4]

From 1996[contradictory] to 1998, was the anti-vice unit head of the city police during Rodrigo Duterte's third term as Davao City mayor. From 1999 to 2004, under mayor Benjamin de Guzman she led the city police's women and children's protection desk. She officer for the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) working assignments in Metro Manila and Davao from 2004 to 2007.[4]

In 2005, while assigned in Davao City, her then-husband, Roland Vilela who was head of the city police's anti-vice unit was accused of raping a 17-year old minor who came to him to ask for help to file charges against her aunt who forced her to prostitution. Garma pleaded to Duterte who was again mayor during that time, to not reassign him and had him only suspended.[4]

In 2009, Garma settled in Davao City during the time Duterte is once again mayor. She began working as administrative officer under Ramon Apolinario. From 2011 and 2015, she was station commander of Sasa, the seaport and airport area of Davao; and Santa Ana which also covers Davao Chinatown.[4]

She would be appointed as the head of the CIDG for Region 7 (Central Visayas) on January 4, 2017.[3] She held this role amidst the Philippine drug war waged by President Rodrigo Duterte.[5] Aside from the drug war, Garma has committed to make the arrest of Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association supreme master and fugitive Ruben Ecleo Jr. possible as CIDG Region 7 head.[3]

Garma would be one of the named personalities implicated in the case filed before the International Criminal Court against Duterte for the extrajudicial killings under the anti-drug operation in 2017 by self-confessed gunman Edgar Matobato.[5] Another policeman SPO4 Arturo Lascanas, who was self-confessed member of the Davao Death Squad (DDS), would name Police Captains Garma and Edilberto Leonardo as its operational heads in his affidavit to the ICC, while taking direct orders from then Davao Mayor Duterte's Special Assistant and now Senator Bong Go.[6]

Cebu City

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On July 1, 2018, Garma assumed the position of chief of the Cebu City police.[4] She replaced Joel Doria[7] This was despite then mayor Tomas Osmeña's opposition with the appointment due to allegations that Garma was receiving ₱1 million weekly bribe as CIDG head.[8]

Her relationship with the mayor is not cordial with Garma filing an obstruction of justice case against Osmeña for ordering the release of three suspects who were caught illegally refilling butane canisters with liquefied petroleum gas within the same year. This case was dismissed by the Ombusdman in 2024.[9]

In October 2018, Garma led an operation in Cebu City as part of the wider war on drugs of now President Rodrigo Duterte. A man suspected to be a drug user was allegedly shot in his sleep. The man's mother through a sworn statement read in the 2024 congressional inquiries alleged Garma visited the man's wake by his family and was quoted to have yelled "Why is there only one dead?".[10]

PNP Region 7 chief Debold Sinas would praise the Cebu City police role under Garma in Duterte's war on drugs including the busting of the Ygot Drug Syndicate, and the confiscation of ₱600 million suspected methamphetamine which is the biggest in the history of the city police.[11]

That would be her final police assignment before opting an early retirement in 2019 with ten years left before reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.[8][12] She held the rank of Police Lieutenant Colonel.[13]

PCSO general manager

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After 15 days from retiring,[12] Garma would be appointed as the general manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) by President Rodrigo Duterte.[14] She served the role from July 15, 2019 until 2022.[1][14] She would appoint her daughter and cousins to various positions within the agency.[15][16]

Wesley Barayuga killing

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Main article: Killing of Wesley Barayuga

PCSO board secretary Wesley Barayuga was shot dead in July 2020 in Mandaluyong.[17] In September 2024, Santie Mendoza of the Philippine National Police-Drug Enforcement Group (PNP-PDEG) alleged that the death is an assassination claiming that National Police Commission Commissioner Edilberto Leonardo and Garma wanted Barayuga dead for the PCSO's official's alleged involvement in illegal drug trade.[13][18]

General Rommel Marbil ordered the immediate full re-investigation of the Wesley Barayuga murder based on the new evidence, including the testimony of key witnesses Edilberto Leonardo and Garma during a House of Representatives quadcom hearing.[19]

Post-retirement and congressional inquiry

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In 2024, Garma would be linked to the August 2016 killings of three Chinese inmates at the Davao Prison and Penal Farm (DPPF) during inquiries by the House of Representatives of the Philippines on the Philippine drug war. DPPF head Gerardo Padilla alleged that Garma had coerced him to cooperate in the killings of the three Chinese nationals.[20]

Her career in both the police and the PCSO as well as the extent of his relationship with former president Rodrigo Duterte was also put into scrutiny.[8][15] She would make a personal appearance in the inquiries in September 2024.[21]

Garma and her daughter, went to the United States after her release. They were arrested San Francisco on November 7 and were deported by the NIS in coordination with the Philippine Bureau of Immigration.[22]

Personal life

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Garma was married to Roland Vilela who was a provincial police chief for Iloilo.[23] She ended her marriage with Vilela through annulment after a scandal broke up in 2007. She also has an adopted daughter.[4] Spending most of her police career in Davao City, she was born in Cagayan Valley, with Cagayan as her home province.[4][3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Personal Data Sheet: Royina Garma" (PDF). Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  2. ^ Seares, Pachico A. (September 18, 2024). "Seares: Ex-police colonel Royina Garma now shuns questions about her 'special, close' ties with Rodrigo Duterte. In her feud with Tomas Osmeña, during her 2018-2019 stint as Cebu City police chief, Garma publicly took pride in having the support of 'the man in Malacanang'". SunStar Publishing Inc. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d "Female CIDG chief: Don't mess with me". Cebu Daily News. Philippine Daily Inquirer. January 17, 2017. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "Cebu City police chief Royina Garma: Mayor's hated, Duterte's trusted". Rappler. Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Lawyer for Matobato files complaint vs. Duterte at ICC". GMA News. April 24, 2017. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  6. ^ Montalvo, Antonio II. "Bong Go's own death squad was led by Garma". Vera Files. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  7. ^ Pateres, Camille L. (July 23, 2019). "Garma named new PCSO head?". The Freeman. Philippine Star. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  8. ^ a b c Bolledo, Jairo (September 20, 2024). "Royina Garma: Alleged DDS cop and her ties to Rodrigo Duterte". Rappler. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  9. ^ Rita, Joviland (September 20, 2024). "Ombudsman junks Garma complaints vs ex-Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña". GMA News. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  10. ^ Subingsubing, Krixia (September 14, 2024). "2 sides of ex-cop emerge in House 'drug war' probe". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  11. ^ "Garma stays as CCPO director until order to be top PCSO honcho arrives". Cebu Daily News. Philippine Daily Inquirer. July 1, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  12. ^ a b Lalu, Gabriel Pabico (September 12, 2024). "Ex-police official Garma cited for contempt in quad comm hearing". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  13. ^ a b Bolledo, Jairo (September 27, 2024). "'Garma, Leonardo ordered me to kill a PCSO exec' – anti-drug cop". Rappler. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Duterte-era cop accused of 'bankrolling' own party-list using PCSO funds". ABS-CBN News. September 27, 2024. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Panti, Llanesca (September 27, 2024). "Garma questioned for appointing daughter as PCSO 'confidential agent'". GMA News. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  16. ^ Subingsubing, Krixia (September 28, 2024). "Former state lottery chief Garma gave posts to daughter, kin". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
  17. ^ "PCSO board secretary shot dead in Mandaluyong". GMA News. July 30, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  18. ^ Panti, Llanesca (September 27, 2024). "Cop tags Garma, Leonardo in killing of PCSO official in 2020". GMA News. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  19. ^ Serquiña, Mariel Celine (September 29, 2024). "PNP chief orders CIDG to reopen probe of Barayuga murder case". GMA Network. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
  20. ^ Lalu, Gabriel Pabico (September 4, 2024). "Ex-prison head does a 180: Garma called me over ops vs slain Chinese". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  21. ^ Subingsubing, Krixia (September 13, 2024). "Garma reduced to tears under House grilling, then detained". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  22. ^ Pulta, Benjamin (November 12, 2024). "DOJ tasks BI to bring Garma back from US". Philippine News Agency. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  23. ^ Guardian, Daily (February 12, 2020). "Ex-Iloilo top cop asked to 'lobby' for STL ops". Daily Guardian. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
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