President Rodrigo Duterte said he would appoint a chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) who would tell him that he is ready to kill drug lords.

In an interview by Unang Hirit last Friday but only aired over GMA-7 on Monday, Duterte said this was the "better deal" he wants to have with anyone aspiring to be the PNP chief.

He said the three nominees - PNP officer-in-charge Lieutenant General Archie Francisco Gamboa, deputy chief for operations Lieutenant General Camilo Cascolan, and Chief of the Directorial Staff Major General Guillermo Eleazar - were all good possible successor of resigned and later retired PNP chief Oscar Albayalde.

"But I want a better deal. It's not enough that you recommend to me. If you will tell me, 'Sir, if you will choose me, all the drug lords will be dead, they'll all die...if you cannot give me that guarantee, then I won't appoint you," he said.

Duterte said he loves the PNP but he found it hard to choose among its officials who would be the next PNP chief.

Duterte apparently became cautious in appointing the new police head after what happened to Albayalde, who was forced to quit as the PNP chief prior to his retirement on November 8 following allegations that he was a protector of the "ninja cops" involved in recycling seized illegal drugs when he was the provincial chief of Pampanga in 2013. Celerina Monte/DMS