City police director Supt. Melvin Gayotin told reporters that he would create a dietary and exercise program for his men who failed to pass the Physical Fitness Test.
He said he is waiting for the final list of those who failed the last PFT to finalize the program.
Cebu Provincial Police Office director Senior Supt. Vicente Loot said policemen in the province who failed the PFT test would undergo re-training to give them chance to pass the test.
Senior Insp. Lourdes Ingente of the city police administration branch is tasked to oversee the program. Ingente told The Freeman that they would ask dieticians for tips on healthy foods for unfit policemen to shape up before the end of the three semesters.
Gayotin wanted unfit personnel transferred to Service Security Group so that close monitoring on their exercises will be effective.
Loot told The Freeman that he has directed police chiefs in all cities and municipalities in the province to closely monitor the compliance of his directive, which is in relation to the order of regional police director Chief Supt. Silverio Alarcio.
"Gamay ra hinoon nila sila nga polis nga wala makapasar sa PFT nga ubos sa atong command," Loot said. But he clarified that they should comply with Alarcio's order for the good of the department.
According to Loot, policemen play an important role in maintaining peace and order that they should be in good physical condition all the time.
Alarcio warned more than 500 unfit policemen under his command to make sure they pass the PFT, saying that those who fail for several times will be advised to apply for the police's disability program.
The regional director explained that it is a continuous qualification for a policeman to maintain his fitness to stay in service.
In its objective for policemen to stay fit, the Philippine National Police leadership has ordered two physical fitness tests every year. The test includes push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups and a run of up to three kilometers.
A PFT instructor from the PNP Regional Health Service will then measure the vital signs of a policeman to see to it if he can still go on with the test.
Before the test is conducted, PFT instructors will determine the desired Body Mass Index (BMI) of a policeman. With the BMI result, a PFT instructor will now have basis to look into if in any case the policeman fails to finish his test.
But according to Gayotin, although some policemen have BMI that is not proportional based on the tabulation, they could still pass the test.
A police official from the PNP Regional Health Service who asked not to be named said: "The more nga dako ang imong BMI, the more nga dako ang imong risk nga masakit."
According to a National Health and Nutrition Examination survey, people with BMI of 27 and above have the risk of developing diabetes, hypertension, heart diseases and hypercholesterolemia.
The normal BMI range based on a data obtained by The Freeman is 18.5 to 24.9. Those who are classified as obese have BMI ranging from 40.0 to 70.0. - Edwin Ian Melecio and Jose P. Sollano