UNDERSTANDING OUR COPS – Policemen should be in high spirits, thanks for the movie “Men in Uniform”.

They should be because the film encourages people to understand and appreciate the sacrifices, bravery, heroism, professionalism and exemplary performance of men and women in the service beyond the call of their duty.

Of course, not all men in uniform are good, but there are only very few bad eggs but whose activities are enough to taint the good image of many good policemen.

Who among us are willing to risk our lives to protect people we do not know or who do not care about us? Malamang sasabihin ng iba mostly from millennials: “Don’t me. Wag ako”.

The movie featured Rommel Padilla, Empress Shuck, Alfred Vargas, Rayver Cruz, Jeric Raval. They played the good cops.

There was also the once super sexy Rosanna Roces who has grown extraordinarily big. Osang played a bad mom in the movie. Nakakagulat si Osang. Halos di ko sya nakilala.

What I loved most was what I saw around me at the cinema last July 7. Policemen and policewomen with their loved ones watching a movie together. Napakagandang bonding.

But beyond the bonding is the message of the movie. I’m not fond of action movies but Men in Uniform will probably among the few movies that will stay in my mind forever.

There was one scene in the movie that really moved me and the two media practitioners Susan Yadao of dwIZ and Liway Yparraguirre, also of dwIZ and People’s Journal who sat beside me at the CSI Lucao movie house.

It was that scene when Raval who played SPO2 Conrado Baldemor, a single dad, who was disrespected by his teenage daughter, finally gained the love and respect he longed for from his child. That happened after Ravel served as negotiator during a hostage-taking incident and saved the lives of a two-year-old child and two adult female captives.

Baldemor was all over television and newspapers after his heroic act and his daughter was congratulated in school. Dati kasi ikinahihiya nya ang trabaho ng tatay nya dahil sa mga bad news about some policemen. Yung ilang bugok, apektado maski ibang matitino.

Patak pareho ang mga luha namin sa eksenang nagsisisi ang anak sa maling paratang nya sa tatay nya.

It was good that the PNP encouraged the policemen to bring their families to watch the movie. At least maintindihan nila ang trabaho ng isang pulis.

Pati tuloy ako na walang kamag-anak na pulis ay naantig.

Kudos to Sr. Supt. Wilson Lopez, the OIC provincial director of Pangasinan, who took time out to join his policemen at the CSI The City Mall Cinema in Lucao.

He also went to SM City Rosales earlier where the same movie was shown. Buti yan, lead by example. — Eva Visperas

 

THE LTO-LTFRB CRACKDOWN – In the FIBA World Cup, it’s France against Croatia in the final after beating Belgium and England, respectively in their semi-final matches in Russia.

France has the edge man for man but the ball is round and the underdog Croatians may yet spring a surprise and pull an upset victory over the French to nail down their first world crown in their first ever appearance in the finals of the FIBA World Cup.

The final game of the two top football teams of the world is slated Sunday morning, way past our deadline.

Back to Pangasinan, we were informed by Philippine Star top lensman and  also of the Punch, Cesar Ramirez,  that commuters from Lingayen going to their schools and for work in Dagupan are having a nightmare having to fight their way for a daily  ride with just few  PUBs and PUJs left to fly the route.

This leaves many commuters high and dry by the roadside every day, prompting Mayor Sammy Rosario of Binmaley to mobilize his Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management truck to give free rides to his stranded constituents.

Cesar is wondering if Lingayen Mayor Iday Castaneda is also willing to do the same for her constituents at least until things return to normal and after, more public utility vehicles will be back to service the Lingayen-Dagupan route.

But it appears that not only commuters from Lingayen are suffering from the situation but also from other areas where an acute shortage of public utility buses and jeepneys also exists.

The shortage of PUBs and PUJs started when the Department of Transportation (DoTr) began cracking the whip on colorum, old, dilapidated and smoke-belching vehicles, which constitute about 50 percent of the public conveyances running along the highways.

The colorum vans have slowly vanished as their owners also refused to risk being slapped with P200,000 fine, plus impoundment of three months if apprehended by the Land Transportation and Franchising Board

But methinks, the crackdown is necessary and long overdue because the operators of these colorum vehicles as well as the old and smoke-belching vehicles continue to flout the laws.

They had long been violating the laws for a long time while earning fortunes at the expense of commuters who have to risk their lives for riding their dilapidated units.

In the case of colorum vans and buses, it puzzles us why they’d rather risk operating without the required franchises when they could apply for these.

Could it be because they were used to being untouchables as colorum operators with the protection of corrupt public officers? Well, things have to change under the Duterte administration.  Corruption is definitely a no-no and the public welcomes it. – Leonardo Micua   

 

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