After months of suspension, Winston Casio has been reinstated as the spokesperson of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) following the dismissal of a criminal case against him and after undergoing anger management therapy.

In an interview in Malacañan, Casio revealed that his suspension was linked to slander charges filed against him, which were eventually dropped after an amicable settlement with the complainant. The case was dismissed on March 13.

"Hindi na kami nagkasuhan, hindi ko na siya kinasuhan, tapos yung kaso niya inurong niya (We no longer pursued cases against each other, and they withdrew their complaint)," he said on Wednesday, Feb. 19.

As part of his settlement, Casio publicly apologized in court to the complainant, his legal counsel, and his spouse, acknowledging the impact of the incident.

"You can say many things about me, but I am not a very proud man. So pagka may mali ako, I would admit to the mistake automatically (You can say many things about me, but I am not a very proud man—if I make a mistake, I admit it automatically)," he said.

However, he clarified that while he apologized for his actions, he did not apologize for the circumstances that led to the confrontation.

“At the end of the day, everything ends well. I had to apologize, and I am man enough to apologize,” he said.

Casio was suspended after he slapped a janitor during a PAOCC operation in Bagac, Bataan, on Oct. 31 last year. The incident occurred after Casio was informed that the janitor had allegedly cursed at and made offensive gestures toward PAOCC staff and members of the media. He confronted the janitor and, after a brief exchange, slapped him three times.

The incident was captured on video, leading to public backlash and legal complaints.

Therapy

Casio disclosed that he underwent anger management therapy and is taking medication to control his temper, admitting he had a history of short temper even before joining the government.

“I underwent anger management, to be honest, kasi dati talaga mainitin ang ulo ko. I have to be very honest about that. mainitin talaga ulo ko (I underwent anger management, to be honest, because I used to have a short temper. I have to be very honest about that—I really had a temper)," he said.

"Noon pa sinasabi talaga ng mga empleyado ko na mainitin talaga ulo ko (Even before my employees had been telling me that I had a temper)," he added.

When asked if he has changed, he responded with a laugh: “I hope so. I was given clearance by my doctor and psychologist that I am okay (I was given clearance by my doctor and psychologist that I am okay)."

During his suspension, Casio said he was still receiving pay but was only assigned to paperwork, with no involvement in operations or spokesperson duties.

“Well, during the time that I was suspended, as you would imagine, I was not doing the things that I used to do, so basically I was ‘confined to the quarters,'" he said.

With his reinstatement, Casio has resumed all previous responsibilities, including media and public relations and assisting in PAOCC operations and raids.

“Opo, nabalik na po lahat (everything has been reinstated). I am technically back as spokesperson and director-in-charge of media and public relations, and de facto, I also helped the operations of PAOCC— I mean the operations of raids and so on," he said.