‘NO LETUP’ New PRO-6 boss to sustain war on drugs

By: Jennifer P. Rendon 

Illegal drugs will still be one of the top concerns of the new Police Regional Office (PRO)-6 director.

Police Brigadier General Rene Pamuspusan, who assumed the PRO-6 helm on June 27, 2019, said he will go hard against illegal drugs even as he introduced reforms from the national headquarters.

He said Oplan Double Barrel, the PNP’s flagship campaign against illegal drugs, will still be the cornerstone of the campaign.

Pamuspusan’s predecessors retired BGen. John Bulalacao and Major Gen. Cesar Hawthorne Binag, also made the anti-illegal drugs campaign their priority.

Under Bulalacao’s watch from June 2018 to May 2019, PRO-6 conducted 1,664 positive anti-illegal drugs operations. This led to the arrests of 2,337 personalities and the filing of 654 cases in court.

But these operations also resulted in several deaths of alleged drug personalities who purportedly put up a fight with police operatives.

Aside from illegal drugs, Pamuspusan said he and the regional directorial staff will focus on internal cleansing and anti-criminality programs.

He also underscored transparency in procurement and fund management. Campaigns on police community relations should be properly operationalized down to the police stations.

“But as we oversee the implementation of these national policies in our region I will also initiate the review, evaluation, and validation on the operational effectiveness of these policies so that we could continuously support the higher headquarters in coming up with an even more effective and evolving policing strategy,” he added.

In his speech during the assumption of command ceremony, Pamuspusan declared that his first act as the regional director of PRO-6 “is for every policeman in Region 6 to continue and sustain the strategic direction set forth by Brigadier Gen. Bulalacao.”

On top of that, he also instructed provincial and city police directors and chiefs of police to further strengthen their relationship with other agencies and other organizations of the society in order to ensure public safety through a total community cooperation and partnership in this region.

“We must be marching in unison with our counterparts in the Armed Forces to fight terrorism and insurgency,” he said.

Pamuspusan said they have to move forward as one with the other bureaus of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to have a cohesive effort in public safety.

“Remember that the PNP can only go as far as the support we get from public service,” he said.

But as he made his “demands,” Pamuspusan assured every member of PRO-6 that he will not be demanding from them what he is not willing to do himself.

“I promise you that I will give extra effort necessary to achieve our tasks. Likewise, I express nothing less from you,” he said.

Claiming that being regional director is the most daunting responsibility of his police service, Pamuspusan is confident that he could do with the police’s support and prayers.