Gordon: Marcos reinstatement 'very disturbing'

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — Sen. Dick Gordon finds President Duterte's order to reinstate Supt. Marvin Marcos, head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Region 8 (CIDG-8), "very disturbing."

Duterte admitted that he was the high official who ordered national police chief Bato Dela Rosa to put Marcos back to his post, after Dela Rosa fired him.

Marcos was the head of the CIDG team who served a search warrant for slain Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa, whose death is the subject of a Senate investigation.

In an interview with CNN Philippines on Sunday, Gordon revealed his thoughts on Duterte's decision: "This is kind of nebulous to me, and quite frankly, disturbing and very disconcerting."

Gordon said he couldn't understand Duterte's reason for reinstating Marcos.

The President explained he had asked for Marcos' resintatement so he can "keep track of his movements." Duterte claimed that Marcos, like Mayor Espinosa, is involved in the illegal drug trade.

"[Duterte's] releasing [Marcos] because he wants to be able to investigate him further by releasing him. That's a very nebulous statement as far as I'm concerned," Gordon said.

He added that the charges against Marcos might be very serious if it's proven that Espinosa was indeed murdered.

Marcos and his team claimed they shot Espinosa in self-defense after he allegedly fired at them using a gun he smuggled into his jail cell.

Gordon said Marcos' reinstatement also shows there are double standards when it comes to handling police-committed crimes.

"It also goes into the question of equitability of handling policemen and civilians. There must be one law for all. Normally, if he was a civilian and the cases were filed right away, he would be right away incarcerated, detained," the senator said.

Gordon said he will ask Espinosa's son Kerwin, an alleged drug lord, about his father's involvement in the illegal drug trade, when the Senate hearing on Espinosa's killing resumes on Monday.

Along with the younger Espinosa, Sen. Leila De Lima's former partner and alleged bagman Ronnie Dayan will also testify in the hearing.