Wanted: A prudent governor

By Ermin Garcia Jr.

No matter how hard the proponents of the indiscriminate issuance of the shotguns to all the barangay chiefs in the province try to defend the program, they cannot convince the peace-loving Pangasinenses that it’s OK to arm the kapitans. Never mind that it is bruited about as being legal.

Only the goony-hoodlum types among the kapitans are going gaga over the distribution, after all the program allowed them to be armed without having to go through the rigid tests by the PNP to be licensed to own and possess a firearm. Sure it’s legal for them to apply for ownership or possession but it’s criminal for any public official (including the police) to arm an unqualified civilian, particularly a kapitan-hoodlum.

As many of the mayors expected, horror stories involving the newly armed kapitans are beginning to surface. And why shouldn’t these be expected? Guv Spine and the onor-onors in his administration were falling over themselves by playing Santa Claus in August even before guidelines for the shotguns’ use could be issued! Or worse, before the kapitans could be determined to be psychologically fit to possess one.

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Guv Spines, having been the province’s provincial director in the late 90s, should be the first to know that local police stations are poorly-equipped and many of those assigned to our police stations are poorly trained in handling firearms themselves.

As PNP’s own proven tactics show, high visibility of well-equipped uniformed cops in communities deter commission of crimes. But I have yet to read an account in the annals of PNP that a program that armed barangays chief helped the police maintain peace and order.

So it shocked many local officials that P/Sr. Supt. Isagani Nerez, as provincial director, did not even think for a moment that arming the kapitans would reflect on his command’s ineffectiveness in maintaining peace in the communities. Even more disappointing that he was quick to defend the program himself instead of appealing for the shotguns to be issued to the police stations that need them badly.

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The communities have absolutely nothing to gain from seeing their kapitans armed to the teeth, many of whom are already known to possess handguns (legally and illegally) for their protection. The “official” shotgun in the kapitans’ hands only give their constituents one message – “Don’t mess with me!”

But the ‘Spine’ administration can still do a good turn by recalling and re-issuing the shotguns to the city/town police stations, as silently prayed for by a good majority of the mayors, leaving the responsibility for the custody and their use to the local police chiefs. This will enable police stations to have immediate access to these shotguns themselves for all the barangays’ (not just the kapitans’) protection!

To cater to the barangay chiefs, he can issue the guideline that the town’s police chief shall be authorized to issue a shotgun to a kapitan for a limited period and only for a specific police operation against cattle rustlers, drug traffickers, gambling lords in his jurisdiction, and the shotguns should be returned to police custody upon termination of the police operation. In brief, a police chief will be responsible for the use and misuse of the shotgun by a barangay chief!

But under no circumstance should a shotgun be issued by the police chief during a political campaign period or manhunt operations or for purposes of “maintaining peace and order” for that is the responsibility of the local police.

This should score him more brownie points from Pangasinenses (not just the kapitans) for being the prudent governor.

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Alaminos City Mayor Nani Braganza has the correct perspective vis-a-vis his barangay chiefs. He has equipped them with vehicles with which to serve their constituents and to patrol the barangays. The vehicles have served them well and he knows that shotguns have no place in his peaceful city. The last thing he needs is having to attend to complaints about gangsterism by kapitans in the barangays.

So he wisely made the kapitans choose – keep your shotguns but return the vehicle, or return the shotguns and keep the vehicle! From our last count, a good majority have already indicated they prefer to keep the vehicles!

Three cheers for the Alaminos kapitans!

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Here’s another recent horror story on the Spine shotguns.

A barangay captain in Mangaldan reportedly walked to a boisterous drunk in the barangay with the issued shotgun in his hand. Enraged by the actuation of the pathetic drunk, the kapitan whipped the poor guy on the face with the shotgun!

The miserable drunk may have foolishly gone out of line, perhaps showed a lack of respect for the barangay authority in spite of the display of the shotgun, but using the shotgun for a largely minor misdemeanor was not warranted. (The poor guy should thank his stars that the kapitan did not have his finger on the trigger that time).

And how many more kapitans now use shotguns just to keep the noise in their communities down? Yet, we were told the shotguns were mainly for the kapitans‘ self-defense and protection. Against whom? The unarmed drunks?

If the honorable board members believe the Mangaldan kapitan was justified, then we are in real trouble! With that mindset, peace-loving Pangasinenses should now consider arming themselves to defend themselves against the kapitans who would have no qualms terrorizing their own constituents!

Guess who will be first to rush and arm themselves ala Rambo? The guys in the Capitol, of course!

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MULONG VILLAMIL WRITES 30. Atty. Romulo Villamil was with EG’s original team that put out the first issues of the PUNCH. His “This Much” column helped set the trend for column writing among local journalists – punchy and witty.

News of his passing in the US now leaves only my Uncle Gerry (he just turned 85) as the lone survivor of the orig batch. The PUNCH family deeply mourns losing another of its own.

(Readers may reach columnist at punch.sunday@gmail.com. For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/punchline/
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