Gullas OKs relief of 73 city cops

CEBU, Philippines — Talisay City Mayor Eduardo Gullas has backed Cebu Provincial Police Office's plan to relieve and retrain the city's 73 police officers.

"I will not object, it's for their own good. Retraining will improve them.  I will not consider it as a penalty," the mayor said.

Superintendent Ryan Manongdo, CPPO deputy director for operations, has given the police 14-day ultimatum to reduce the city's crime incidents, particularly theft and robbery cases, otherwise they will be relieved from their posts and sent for retraining.

Superintendent Jason Villamater, the city police chief, is exempted from the warning as he is new in the police station. He replaced Superintendent Emerson Dante last month.

The ultimatum is due to expire on Thursday, October 26.

Gullas said though the police officers will still benefit from it as the retraining will help them enhance their skills and performance during operations.

It can also be used when they apply for promotion, he said.

"As far as I'm concerned, I have no complaints," he said.

But the mayor said the relief should follow the due process of law.

Gullas, for his part, said he is contended with the performance of the city police.

Based on the city's recent statistics on theft and robbery released by CPPO, police noted an improvement from last year.

From January to September this year, police recorded 71 robbery incidents, or 35 fewer than that of the same period last year.

Also, police noted 110 theft incidents in the past nine months, a drop of 103 cases from 213 incidents in the January-September 2016 period.

Even without the ultimatum, Villamater said they are doing their best to maintain the peace and order in the city and to lessen the crime volume.

Among their initiatives was distributing flyers containing safety tips to avoid petty crimes.

One of the tips warns people not to flaunt their jewelry and cellular phones in public. Another advice is to avoid walking in dark areas or using ATM machines at night.

He said the distribution also serves as an information drive, particularly for students who are common victims of robbery and snatching.

"We took initiative to distribute flyers. It is about awareness and information drive to avoid petty crimes and street crimes," he said.  (FREEMAN)