Guillermo Lorenzo Tolentino Eleazar (Tagalog pronunciation:[ʔɛljaˈzaɾ]; born November 13, 1965) is a Filipino retired police officer who served as Chief of the Philippine National Police from May to November 2021. He was also the Deputy Chief of Administration in PNP.
On May 5, 2021, DILG Secretary Eduardo Año announced his tenure as the next Chief of the Philippine National Police. He added policies related to COVID-19 and other issues. His tenure was relatively supported by government officials and multiple senators. He eventually was succeeded on November 13, 2021, retiring shortly after.
Guillermo Eleazar was born in Tagkawayan, Quezon on November 13, 1965. His father, Victor Eleazar, was a war veteran. He later went to the Philippine Christian University, earning a master's degree in public administration.[2] In 1987, he entered the Philippine Military Academy (PMA), graduating.[3] He was the top 4 in the Hinirang Class of 1987 in the PMA, with Cum laude.[4] He also got the Cavalier Award, an award which is given to popular alumni.[5]
Personal life
He is called "Guillor" or "Gemo" by his friends. Eleazar is married to Lally Hernandez. They have four children together.[2]
On June 1, 2018, he became the Regional Director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) after a shuffle in positions.[9] During his tenure until June 2019, NCRPO arrested 293 drug suspects, a 369.6% increase from June 2016.[10] In March 2019, Eleazar received controversy for scolding a cop, Anwar Nasser, for extortion. He was defended by Police Chief Oscar Albayalde[11] and president Rodrigo Duterte.[12] In November 2018, Eleazar threatened to file a lawsuit over the spread of a viral photo. The photo contained a picture of him with a Chinese official.[13]
Eleazar received notoriety on March 6 when videos of him lashing out, slapping, and cursing corporal Marlo Quibete for extortion went viral on news outlets.[14] The same day, he fired two chiefs (Chief Superintendent Bernabe Balba and Pasay City Chief Noel Flores) for the same reason.[15] In December 2019, Eleazar was promoted to Three-star general.[16] From September 2020 to May 2021, he was the Deputy Chief of Administration in PNP. He was also the Commander of COVID-19 protection from March to November 2020.[2] He served as Deputy Chief for Administration of the PNP just before his appointment as PNP Chief.[17]
Chief
On May 5, 2021, Eduardo Año announced his designation as the next Chief of the Philippine National Police[2] after the acceptance of Rodrigo Duterte.[18][19] The appointment named him the sixth chief under the Duterte administration.[20]
His administration was well-supported by the government.[21] Senate President Tito Sotto said that his administration would be the "best choice ever".[22][23] Senator Win Gatchalian supported his tenure, expressing that Eleazar's administration is "no-nonsense" and "action-oriented".[21] He also gained support from the outgoing chief, Debold Sinas, stating that he would give his "100-percent support" to him.[24] His main position during his term was to cleanse the PNP ranks.[25] He opposed hazing in the Philippine National Police Academy, just after a cadet died.[26]
When his tenure started, he gained controversy on June 1, 2021, for berating a cop which killed a 52-year-old woman.[27] He ordered police to use social media to encourage residents to vaccinate themselves for COVID-19.[28] He ordered strict border monitoring.[29] Eleazar ordered police to check areas where kids can go.[30] Other than COVID-19 campaigns, he ordered a massive body-camera information campaign for fellow policemen.[31] He was succeeded by a Quezonian, Dionardo Carlos, as PNP Chief on November 13, 2021.[32] He later retired following his administration.[33][34]
Politics
Election results for Eleazar per province.
In July 2021, a channel posted a video in which Eleazar dismissed candidates which supported New People's Army (NPA) rebels, gaining a total of 20,324 views on YouTube. News website Rappler fact-checked the video, which was officially deemed fake.[35] In November 2021, Filipino politician Teodoro Locsin Jr. encouraged Eleazar to run for senator, stating “I won’t wish you luck, Gen. Eleazar; the victory of a man of your quality shouldn’t be left to luck. I wish our country luck that you win."[36] Senator Panfilo Lacson also encouraged him to run for senator.[37] The following month, Eleazar encouraged policemen to not engage in politics.[38] After his statement, he decided not to run.[39] After encouragement by politicians, Eleazar changed his decision to run.[40] He announced his bid on November 14 and officially filed his candidacy the next day, the last day of filing.[41]
Eleazar ran for senator in the 2022 Philippine Senate elections as a Reporma candidate under the Lacson-Sotto senatorial ticket. He substituted the candidacy of radio commentator and PWD advocate Paolo Capino, which was withdrawn on November 12, 2021.[42] His platform focused on improving peace and order in the Philippines,[43] and expanding PNP services. He supported securing Overseas Filipino Workers and their jobs.[3]
On February 11, 2022, Mike Velarde of El Shaddai blessed Eleazar to run for senator.[44] The following month, 600,000 policemen from the Philippine Association of Detective and Protective Agencies Operators (PADPAO) decided to vote for Eleazar.[45] He was also endorsed by the Iglesia ni Cristo community.[46][5] He lost, gaining 16th place with 11,194,886 votes, accounting 20.28% of the votes.[47]
