POLICE Regional Office (PRO)-Davao director Brigadier General Marcelo Morales scolded all the police in this region during the official opening of the “Madayaw” (Making every day a way of change) program Tuesday, September 10, at Camp Sgt. Quintin Merecido, Buhangin, Davao City.
The program aimed to further enhance their personality amidst various issues hounding the police in general.
Morales discussed the missing firearms issued to the police during their regular inventory and the illegal relationships by some married policemen with their colleagues who are also married.
“May mga asawa yung iba, makikipag-relationship sa kapwa niya pulis na may asawa din (They are already married but they keep on having relationship with their colleagues who happen to also be married),” Morales said.
The police official said if this issue will not be resolved the citizens will lose their respect towards the police authorities.
“Kung hindi natin paparusahan yung mga katulad nung ganon, ano ang sasabihin ng mga matitinong pulis? Ah okay lang pala yan gumawa tayo nga panay kabastusan dito sa PNP, walang nakakasalin sa atin didto dahil kapari-pariha tayong pulis... nagkakamali kayo, hanggat ako’ y nandito nagkakamali kayo. Hindi kayo oobra sa akin (If we won’t punish the philandering cops, what will the good ones say? That it’s okay to do these kinds of illegalities since no one will care, since we are all police here. Then you are wrong. As long as I am here, you are wrong),” Morales said.
He added that even if the police official is already a colonel, he will still be subjected to the same training to show to the lower ranks that the punishment does not favor anyone.
He also said that police officers should also bear in mind that they are not only making a living as police but must think that being an officer is a “noble profession”.
The Madayaw program will be conducted every quarter to ensure that the personality of the police officers in the region will be further honed.