Two Negros police stations put up community pantries

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

 

BACOLOD City – Policemen in Negros Occidental put up their own community pantries to help the needy amid the pandemic.

Personnel of Toboso Municipal Police Station and Escalante City Police Station opened their community pantries last Tuesday.

Police Captain Kenneth Paul Magan, Toboso town police chief, said they initially gathered money from each of the station personnel and have collected P1,000 to buy some basic goods for their pantry.

Magan said they also displayed rice at their pantry from their rice allowance.

After they posted the initiative on social media, nearby residents started to flock at the police station and donations started to pour in, Magan said.

Magan said private donors, individuals, as well as the local government unit supported their initiative.

“Hopefully we can sustain this,” Magan said.

Aside from basic goods, Magan said they also give free face masks to residents.

“Wala man kami pili, bisan sin-o puwede kakuha basta gakinahanglan and indi lang mag abuso,” the police chief said.

Meanwhile, Police Master Sergeant Eliseo Cervantes, assistant of the Escalante City’s police community relations, said they started from the station personnel’s voluntary contribution to buy for the basic goods.

They then started to accept donations until they were able to offer other products at the pantry, he added.

“Bisan dyutay lang makabulig man kami, bisan limited lang ang goods para sa iban,” Cervantes said.

Cervantes said they are controlling the people so that minimum health protocols can still be observed.

Police Lieutenant Abegael Donasco, deputy information officer of Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (Nocppo), said there has been no memorandum from the provincial police office for police stations to put up community pantries.

Donasco said it was the willingness of the station personnel to set up a community pantry to enable them to share with others during these trying times.