Right man for the wrong job

Whether you like him or not, we have to agree that Senator Ping Lacson has a knack for getting the job done. As a cop and as a politician, Ping Lacson has managed to do a good enough job wherever he is posted. So now that he’s about to retire from the Philippine Senate, some people can’t seem to help themselves in wanting to find immediate employment for Lacson regardless of whether it fits his job history, his career path, or not.

From the outside, it seems that Lacson’ friends and overnight backers are more focused on job creation for the senator rather than properly discerning where his proven skills and reputation are most needed and potentially more useful. Another flaw in their concerted efforts is that they are mostly operating on the notion that the next job should be a promotion to a higher post or at least of equal stature to that of being a senator.

Some sick puppies are even toying with or selling the idea that Ping Lacson ought to replace Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon or at the very least assign Senator Lacson as Presidential attack dog against oil smugglers. I only hope that the decision makers in Malacanang vividly remember past mistakes in appointing two people for one item. In the case of the BOC, having two heads are not better than one.

Yes Senator Lacson would be a valuable asset to the republic and so would all the unemployed, under employed, as well as unrecognized and stagnant career employees who perpetually get run over by political appointees. But since the President has already made up his mind to reward Senator Lacson for supporting the PNoy presidency, I guess what we need to figure out is where should Senator Lacson be assigned or appointed for his good and the good of 95 to 100 million Filipinos?

The answer to that my dear Kababayans is to place Senator Panfilo Lacson responsible for the overhaul and redemption of the Philippine National Police.

The current state of the Philippine National Police needs serious looking into considering the almost monthly if not weekly, incident and media reports about policemen being involved in checkpoint murders, jueteng, kidnapping, rape, extortion, “hulidap,” dereliction of duty, as well as being an organization that has effectively cascaded most of their original responsibilities down to force multipliers while sitting in air-conditioned precincts and patrol cars or sitting around malls.

When the Office of the President has to issue a statement ordering the PNP to investigate cases of missing children, one wonders how many incidents, casualties or fatalities does it take before Malacañang or the PNP actually acts on a serious peace and order concern. It is clear that the Philippine National Police and many of its members are “organizationally” and “operationally” ill and in need of a surgeon, and that would be Senator Panfilo Lacson.

As a former chief of the Philippine National Police, Lacson’s love for the service and its people is beyond question. As Chief PNP, Lacson undertook a no nonsense re-evaluation, retraining and re-education of fat, lazy and under performing policemen, even sending them to the hot hole rehabilitation camp in Subic bay. With such a professional history, such a posting would be taking full advantage of his core competency as well as passion.

In spite of his “bias” for the PNP, Lacson has also shown a deep concern for professionalism among its ranks as well as extreme prejudice against criminality. To appoint Senator Lacson as chief rehabilitation officer over the PNP in the context of the PNP’s critical condition would hardly be a demotion but rather a true service to the country and its people who deserve a national police force that truly and honestly “serve and protect” the citizens.

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The COMELEC deserves praise for prohibiting political motorcades along EDSA. The question is why only EDSA? The commissioners may not have realized it but by limiting the restriction to EDSA, the ban on motorcades smack of a bias for Imperial Metro Manila to the exclusion of the rest of the country. Why couldn’t the Comelec place a nationwide ban on political motorcades or at least make sure they don’t take place in cities.

While we’re at it, perhaps the Comelec commissioners would consider putting a ban on campaign vehicles roaming around residential areas with loud speakers and playing loud disruptive campaign jingles even on Sundays and holidays. While sitting at “Yacks”, my favorite electrical rewinding shop in Banawe St. (QC), two such vehicles passed by in the span of ten minutes. They constantly stopped at corners dropping off K-pop styled women who passed out leaflets of their candidate-employer.

Not only are these vehicle/candidates guilty of disturbing the peace, the sheer number of candidates using this type of campaign vehicles certainly causes more traffic than the “big motorcades” of political parties! While the Comelec has made major changes in the election process, it is the many little irritants that directly affect the voters.

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I once told a flirty young woman that having sex with me is deadly. It was not a joke nor was it an egoistical manifestation. The fact of the matter is that I carry the Hepa B virus which combined with the right conditions can kill a person that contracts it. Hepa B is much like AIDS in the sense that you can get it through blood transfusion, infected needles and instruments or the exchange of bodily fluids or sex. I got infected during surgery.

Some people survive the infection and develop the anti bodies like I did, some people are not even aware they’ve been infected until they get really sick from another opportunistic infection, others immediately know they’ve been infected and go through a sad process of deterioration, repeated infections and ultimately die.

The reason why I write this piece is to encourage people who may be possible carriers for infection or who suspect something is wrong to go and be tested. While I am not happy to have been infected during surgery, I am thankful that I at least found out and have been able to take care of my body and live a safe lifestyle caring for my liver.

The worst thing that can happen to you is to be infected, not know about it, and live a lifestyle that leads to killing your liver and yourself. Sadly, I even know of situations where spouses infected their partners after contracting the disease through extra-marital sex. Get tested, get vaccinated, before it’s too late!

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