PRO-7 launches ‘honesty store’

CEBU, Philippines – The Police Regional Office-7 formally launched its own unmanned store that will test the honesty of its customers.

Noy Honesto Coffee Shop opened at the headquarters’ lobby yesterday morning.

The store sells coffee, soft drinks, biscuits, candies and other snacks which are displayed on a long table at the lobby.

The store’s success largely depends on the honesty of the customers who are mostly police personnel, PRO-7 officials said.

Customers are free to get whatever they want from the store and are expected to leave their exact payment in a box provided. They can also get their own change or just donate it.

The store is personally funded by PRO-7 director Prudencio Tom Bañas, who said the profits from this little venture will be going to their police cooperative to be used to help the non-uniformed personnel  during emergencies.

Bañas asked the public to support the project, citing it as a good way to inculcate honesty to the police officers assigned in the regional headquarters.

He said there are many cooperatives that did not succeed because of the presence of selfish interests of the organizers.

However, Bañas said he still has his faith on his constituents.

“I still believe in the goodness of police personnel,” he said.

This was not the first “honesty store” launched in the Visayas.

In January last year, the same store was first launched by the Cebu Provincial Police Office under the leadership of Senior Superintendent Noel Gillamac.

The concept was patterned from the honesty coffee shop in Batanes and from the popular television soap called “Honesto”, which values honesty, among others. – /JMD (FREEMAN)