Saturday, January 13, 2007 170 cops finish security course
AT LEAST 170 policemen from the different parts of Cordillera have completed a 45-day Special Counter-insurgency Operation Unit Training (Scout) in Buguias, Benguet to bolster their internal security operation (ISO) capabilities.
Police Regional Public Information Officer Joseph Adnol said the policemen who completed their Scout, a mandatory training for all PNP uniformed personnel, will be assigned to the conflict-stricken province of Abra for their test mission.
However, the Task Force Abra headed by Senior Superintendent Eugene Martin is assessing the assignments of Scout graduates whho they will be tasked to go after private armed groups of politicians in Abra and members of the New People's Army (NPA) in the province.
The trainees were from the police provincial offices of Abra, Mountain Province, and Benguet where there were previous sightings of NPA rebels, particularly in the tri-boundaries of the three provinces.
Adnol said another batch of trainees from the provinces of Ifugao, Apayao, and Kalinga would also be set.
The PNP has ordered all its operating units in the different parts of the country, especially in NPA strongholds, to take active roles against the rebels to eventually put an end to the 38-year-old communist ideology.
The Scout was formulated by the PNP to strengthen and equip law enforcers with the proper knowledge and skills to combat rebel attacks in their respective areas of jurisdiction.
Adnol added that the training serves as a part of the ISO of the PNP to ensure that its units would not suffer from heavy setbacks during rebel attacks. (DS)
