Manila, Sept. 9 -- President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday admitted that Gen. Nicolas Torre III was removed as Philippine National Police (PNP) chief for refusing to comply with the National Police Commission (Napolcom) order to reverse the reassignment of senior officials.

"He did not agree with the directives that were coming out of Napolcom," Marcos said, when asked about the reason for Torre's dismissal from the top PNP post.

Marcos said he spoke with Torre several times about the Napolcom order, but the latter did not comply.

He emphasized a "very clear" chain of command, noting that "a civilian authority is the overwinning authority when it comes to the police."

"Because the police [force] is technically a civilian organiza...