Office-based cops told to go on field

CEBU, Philippines – At least 29 police officers assigned with desk jobs are relieved from their posts to do foot patrols in response to calls for higher police visibility as a means to deter crimes.

Senior Superintendent Marciano Batiancela Jr., acting director of the Cebu City Police Office, said these personnel with police officer 1 rank will be deployed to the 11 police stations in the city.

The deployment is based on the marching order issued by Philippine National Police Chief Director General Ricardo Marquez to intensify police visibility in the streets, he said.

These police officers are assigned principally in nine police offices in the CCPO.

The most affected though will be Homicide and the City Intelligence Branch with nine and six policemen, respectively.

According to Batiancela Jr., they are just following the order of the central headquarters which took effect last Saturday.

Superintendent Renato Dugan, PRO-7 Public Information Officer said the order was not just for the CCPO but the entire police hierarchy in the country.

“All offices in the PNP are included in the order. The PO1’s are deployed in the streets to conduct for beat patrols for the anti-criminality campaign,” said.

Batiancela also allayed apprehensions that the reduction of personnel assigned in the homicide and intelligence division could affect their services.

He said this should not be the case because there are still non-uniformed personnel who can do the work of the relieved cops. “So, in case sa homicide, pwedi sila mangita og pwedi ma recruit (for the position),” Batiancela said.

Senior Inspector Elisandro Quijano, chief of the Homicide Section, said it would have been better if there were replacements for those relieved officers so as not to hamper their work.

He also said he feels that the trainings that these nine police officers have underwent will be put to waste since they have already mastered their work as homicide investigators even if they are police officer 1.

“PO1 pa sila pero mga imbestigador na na sila,” said Quijano.

He also added if there were policemen who are intended to be beat patrol cops, it could have been better to have the newly graduates assigned to the beat.

Meantime, Dugan said they will still have to wait until the end of Cebu’s hosting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings next month before they can replace the personnel relieved from the police offices. —/VLA (FREEMAN)