EDITORIAL - Secret marshals

The police will soon be fielding so-called secret marshals on board jeepneys, if it has not yet done so already. The decision to take this step came on the heels of that unfortunate incident last week in which a young coed was shot dead by a snatcher who was after her cellphone.

That at least the police is doing something, and quickly, is welcome news. What makes some people not comfortable with it, though, is the fact that the term "secret marshals" only sounds pleasing to the ear in this instance.

In reality, that is, taken in the context that it is a rather hasty reaction to the shooting, the fielding of police "secret marshals" is something that should be approached with concern and caution.

For the truth is, despite the hastily conjured term "secret marshals," the suspicion is that they are no more than just ordinary policemen who have shed their uniforms in favor of plain clothes to make them inconspicuous. They are in effect just plainclothesmen.

In other words, these plainclothesmen who are being passed off as "secret marshals" are not really secret marshals in the strictest sense of the term. Real secret marshals are law enforcers who have undergone highly specialized training.

Such highly specialized training does not only involve a certain quickness and adeptness in the use of weapons, but a high sense of responsibility in using them as well. That means they should never be trigger-happy, especially in a crowded situation as in a jeepney.

Real secret marshals also get screened psychologically and emotionally, making sure they do not go berserk in a situation that requires prudence. In other words, they are people you feel comfortable entrusting your life to.

We do not know if these crucial qualifications apply to the plainclothesmen the police is now trying to pass off as "secret marshals" to protect the jeepney-riding public from snatchers and other criminals. We can only cross our fingers and hope for the best.