Soria orders stepped-up security measures as 76 rookie cops beef-up police stations

By RPCRD, Police Regional Office 8
September 27, 2013

CAMP SEC. KANGLEON, Palo, Leyte – Police Chief Superintendent Elmer R. Soria ordered much tighter security measures to thwart criminal elements from initiating illegal activities during the “Ber” months leading to the Christmas and New Year holidays and as the election period starts even as the Police Regional Office 8 (PRO8) deployed 76 rookie cops to augment the different urban police stations in the region.

“Focused-police operations must be initiated to reduce, if not prevent, index crimes such as robbery, theft, murder, homicide, physical injury and rape in your respective areas of responsibility as the yuletide season draws nearer and the election period starts,” Soria said in a directive.

He directed police chiefs, especially in urban areas, to utilize the 76 rookie policemen who were deployed Friday for the second phase of their training as Police Non-Commissioned Officers (PNCOs).

“Supervise these new policemen in law enforcement and public safety operations and in securing ‘soft targets’ such as airports, seaports, transport terminals, shopping malls, churches, schools and other places of convergence,” he added.

The 76 new policemen, belonging to “Katindig” (Kasanayan sa Tungkulin Inaalay na Diyos ang Gabay) class 2013 took their oath last March 4 and were part of the supplemental quota for the calendar year 2012 second semester Police Officer I (POI) recruitment program.

They just finished their mandatory Public Safety Basic Recruit Course (PSBRC) at the Philippine Public Safety College – Regional Training School 8 (PPSC-RTS8) and will undergo the 5-month Field Training Program (FTP) for the second phase of their training.

“They have just completed the academic phase of their training and they will now be exposed to actual police works in the field of investigation, traffic management and patrol operations,” the police official informed.

The on-FTP cops were distributed to different police offices and stations as follows: Tacloban City Police Office - 16; Ormoc City Police Office - 10; Calbayog City Police Station (CPS) - 10; Catbalogan CPS - 10; Baybay CPS - 5; Maasin CPS - 5; Borongan CPS - 5; Catarman, Palo and Naval Municipal Police Station (MPS) with 5 each station.

After their FTP, the rookie policemen will return to the training school for an evaluation before undergoing the 45-day Special Counter-Insurgency Operations Unit Training (SCOUT).