POLICE officers assigned in Daanbantayan and San Fernando towns who were relieved from their posts on Saturday, Jan. 12, said they were demoralized by their relief.
In an interview, Chief Insp. Arvi Arbuis, who headed San Fernando’s police station before the relief order was served, said their relief was unexpected.
Before his station was visited by Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 Director Chief Supt. Debold Sinas on Saturday, Arbuis said he was informed that he would be given a new assignment in 2019 as part of the revamp in the PRO 7.
He had been assigned in San Fernando since May 17 last year.
What he didn’t expect, he said, was that all 21 police officers under him would also be relieved.
“Initially, we were demoralized as it was really unexpected. But we are police officers and we need to motivate ourselves. That is the nature of our job. We come and go and are expected to be out of our comfort zone,” Arbuis said in Bisaya.
Senior Insp. Adrian Nalua, who was relieved as police chief of Daanbantayan, shared Arbuis’ sentiment.
Nalua and 21 of his officers were relieved from their posts due to their alleged failure to arrest suspected criminals in Daanbantayan because of familiarity, and their failure to report to the station even though they were on duty.
Sinas claimed that the police force in the two towns were “low performers” especially when it came to anti-illegal drug operations. He said it could be because some officers had been staying in the town for a very long time and had become familiar with everyone in the community.
Senior Supt. Manuel Abrugena, Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) director, agreed with Sinas, adding that the relieved police officers had become “complacent.”
“It’s the same level of performance. What we are doing now at the PRO 7 is support them by undergoing trainings. But instead, complacency has already set in, especially if the officer has been assigned in the same post for four to five years. They should leave their comfort zones. This will be good for their development and their careers,” Abrugena said.
Though their efforts are not enough for PRO 7, Arbuis said his personnel did a satisfactory job.
“Maybe our officials saw something that they were not satisfied with or didn’t pass their parameters. Anyway, we will accept those criticisms as it means we still have room for improvement,” Arbuis added.
Sinas said that while the relieved police officers committed offenses, he has no plans of filing charges against them.
Instead, the relieved police officers will undergo retraining and be subjected to the PNP’s moral recovery program to make them more effective in their work, Sinas added.
Meanwhile, Sinas reiterated that policemen are prohibited from pawning their ATM cards to loan sharks as collateral for borrowed money.
Sinas believes that some policemen resort to illegal activities because of the need for extra income since their salaries go straight to money lenders.
Sinas made the reminder after relieving the police officers assigned in Daanbantayan and San Fernando towns on Saturday, Jan. 12.
Two police officers from Daanbantayan and one from San Fernando failed to show their ATM cards when they were interrogated by Sinas and his staff that day.
Sinas found out that the ATM cards were with money lenders.
Sinas spoke to the three police officers and assured them that he would help recover their ATM cards even if he had to pay off their debts himself. (FROM FMD OF SUPERBALITA CEBU/ JKV)