Doria warns police force against soliciting

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City Police Office has discouraged policemen from taking advantage of the yuletide season by soliciting donations for fundraising or any similar purposes.

Senior Superintendent Joel Doria, CCPO director, said policemen are prohibited from receiving any gifts from any group or individual.

“Bawal ang solicitation sa mga police… Bawal manghingi ang police in cash or in kind,” said Doria.

He added that a police officer found to have committed the act may be placed under investigation and be held administratively liable.

He further urged the public to be cautious and refrain from donating to police.

“If may mga police na mag-solicit, ipagpaalam kaagad kasi bawal yan,” he added.

Should there be generous people who really want to share blessings this Christmas season, Doria said it would be better for them to join them in their celebrations instead.

“Imbitahan nalang namin sila sa aming celebration, di na sila kailangang magdala,” he said.

Meanwhile, Doria said the city police will soon make rounds to do caroling at houses, not to ask for gifts, but to convey the message against illegal drugs as part of the police’s ‘OplanTokHang.’

All police units in the city will participate in the caroling program.

In the past two days, 112 houses have been visited as part of the campaign, with 340 drug users and 43 pushers who turned themselves in to the police stations.

From July 1 to November 18, there were a total of 1, 258 drug users and 335 pushers arrested in the series of police operations in Cebu City, while 18 drug suspects were killed in the operations after they allegedly tried to shoot it out with the police.

Doria said the stations will be assessed through their performance in the anti-drug crackdown by end of the year.

The city earlier revealed police stations in Cebu City with a high number of arrested drug suspects in the first 21 weeks of the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, with Police Station 6 in Taboan as the top performing precinct in the anti-drug effort.

Taboan police recorded a total of 250 drug pushers and users arrested, including two of the 15 pushers from their drug watchlist.

Police Station 6 covers the barangays of Taboan, Calamba, San Nicolas Proper, Pahina San Nicolas, Sawang Calero, Suba, and Pasil. (FREEMAN)