EDITORIAL - PNP revamp

The business community has reportedly given the government 90 days to improve the peace and order situation. People are worried not only about ransom kidnappings and bank robberies but also about petty crimes such as cell phone thefts. Even Malacañang has raised an alarm about the growing drug menace. Jueteng and other illegal numbers games are still around. No matter what rosy statistics the Philippine National Police presents about the crime situation, the general perception is that people aren’t safe in the streets or even in their homes.

Complaints about criminality could not be stilled even by the unrest generated by the arrest of deposed President Joseph Estrada or the elections. The latest caper by the Abu Sayyaf highlighted concerns about ransom kidnappings. President Arroyo has since tapped the Armed Forces of the Philippines for the anti-crime campaign. She has also created the National Anti-Crime Council headed by the justice secretary to give more teeth to the drive against criminality. Yesterday, she ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government, which has jurisdiction over the PNP, to rack up at least one victory against criminals every day.

Meanwhile, the PNP has started a major revamp of its top commanders after the election-related prohibition on such movements of personnel was lifted. Among those affected was Senior Superintendent Reynaldo Berroya, who bid goodbye to the PNP Intelligence Group and its multimillion-peso funds that require no accounting, to become the police commander for Central Luzon. Critics of the administration had accused Berroya of using the IG for political persecution and had demanded his ouster as intelligence chief.

Berroya, like the other reshuffled PNP commanders, have been ordered by the President to crack down on jueteng and other forms of illegal gambling and to go after drug traffickers, apart from intensifying the overall campaign against criminality. The reshuffled police officers have to show results soon. It’s not enough to argue that the peace and order situation is now slightly better than during the Estrada administration. People want to feel safe; they want to feel secure while driving or commuting, while using their cell phones, while shopping even in crowded places. The PNP leadership has seen the performance of its men in the past five months. The ongoing reshuffle in the PNP must respond to the public’s needs.