LINGAYEN–Meet the country’s ‘smilingest’ policemen – Pangasinan’s cops, they who do daily smiling exercises as part of their daily routine in their respective stations.

This became the practice for the province’s policemen ever since Senior Superintendent Percival Barba became provincial director last month.

He said he made note of his first impression that the cops in Pangasinan hardly smile and vowed to change all that.

Barba ordered his men to undergo the daily smiling exercise, prompting them to be in the habit of serving the people with a smile.

“Smiling is free. So why not smile instead of frowning?” said Barba who is seen to be smiling a lot.

He said he first instituted the ‘smiling policy’ when he was the police provincial director of Isabela a few years ago in the belief that smiling makes people feel and look younger while frowning makes them older.

In urging his men to serve with a smile, Barba said that hence forth under his watch, frowning will be taboo among policemen in the province.

And how does the smiling exercise go? While in or out of formation, the police officers smile when another greets them with “at the count of three…”

“Smiling is just a small matter but it has a big impact on people,” Barba beamed.

He said the exercise has already borne results and more ‘smiley policemen’ are greeting people entering police stations.

“Smiling is one way of earning the respect and confidence of the people,” he pointed out.

“When policemen smile, people will not be afraid to report their problems to the police,” he added.

When asked if there is a punishment for any police officer caught frowning, Barba said this is already the responsibility of the station chief.-LM

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