By: Jennifer P. Rendon
CONDONING a misdeed could take several forms. Inaction could be one of them.
“I’m not so many words,” said Police Brigadier General Rene Pamuspusan, Western Visayas police chief, following plans to send at least five members of Pototan Police Station for training in Subic, Zambales.
The 45-day Values and Leadership Seminar also includes Luzon-based policemen as participants.
“But we are recommending for the inclusion of the team members to a training in Subic so that they will know what this squad system is all about,” he said.
By team, Pamuspusan refers to the police officers who allegedly did nothing when their two fellow cops were caught drinking liquor inside the police station.
“When you are with a squad or a team, then you are responsible in the discipline of the team. They will be included in the training so that our personnel will know and realize that they have a responsibility to keep everyone disciplined or to help everyone follow the policies and regulations,” he said.
Pamuspusan did not name the Pototan PNP personnel who will be sent to the seminar.
Earlier into his assumption of the PRO-6 top post, Pamuspusan stressed the importance of the “squadding” strategy in a bid to strengthen the competency and discipline of police personnel in the region.
An approach distinct to PRO-6, the term squadding traces its origin to a squad, which is a small number of soldiers comprised of 10 privates, a staff sergeant, and a corporal.
In PRO-6, it was created early 2018 wherein each group will have a squad leader, preferably the most senior officer.
During its inception, a squad leader is expected to report any member of the squad who is remiss with his work or involved in illegal drugs.”
Initially, involvement of PNP personnel in illegal drugs would be the main consideration of squadding.
But later on, it was planned to cover other misdemeanors like involvement in illegal gambling, going to houses of ill repute, and not reporting on duty.
RPHAU FURY
The training of the five Pototan cops stemmed from the misdemeanor of their fellow officers, Patrolman Joerick Ace Ilisan and Police Corporal Esil Penarubia.
They hogged the limelight after they were caught drinking liquor inside the Pototan Police Station 1:15 a.m. of July 18, 2019.
Ilisan and Penarubia were immediately relieved and are now assigned at the PNP Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (RPHAU).
While both policemen were placed under administrative investigation, only Ilisan was criminally charged.
When the incident was reported to their immediate superior, Pototan police chief Major Ronnie Brillo, the latter confronted the drinking duo.
While Peñarubia chose to accept the consequence of their actions, Ilisan allegedly challenged Brillo to a fight.
With his hand on his gun, he allegedly provoked, harassed, and threatened Brillo. He even went outside the station and fired his gun.
Ilisan later went home where Brillo, together with the Iloilo Police Provincial Office -Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT-IPPO) team, arrested him.
The PNP Regional Internal Affairs Service (RIAS) is now investigating Ilisan for alleged indiscriminate gun-firing.
The two cops were also administratively charged for grave misconduct.
