’Tis the season for crimes

It’s 22 days before Christmas. But instead of feeling the holiday season, the fear of being robbed and falling victim to criminals is becoming more real than paranoia. Such fear becomes more pronounced when your own loved ones and people close or known to you, fall victim to armed criminals.

My 19-year old nephew, a college student, got the scare of his life last Thursday night (November 29) when he found himself literally in the middle of a potentially dangerous situation. He was on his way home around 11 o’clock in the evening after attending his night classes at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.

He boarded at the Manila City Hall an air-conditioned bus that regularly plies the Manila‑Zapote, Las Piñas City route. The bus has a television that was tuned in to a regular TV program as the vehicle was running with all lights on inside. So who would think something bad will happen in such an environment?

The bus was fully loaded with passengers on the last day of the week, or on the eve of a long weekend. It happened to be also payday for many employees and workers going to their respective places of destinations late that night.

When their bus reached Coastal, some passengers alighted. It was at this juncture when my nephew, who was seated in the middle of the bus, started to notice a sudden rush of movement at the back of the moving vehicle. Then, a man wearing a hooded black jacket and baseball cap stood up in front.

Not having seen any firearm in his life, my nephew saw the hooded man with a cap wielding something that looked like a gun and announced a robbery. “Kung ayaw n’yo masaktan, ibigay n’yo na lang ang gusto namin,” the gunman told them. The armed robber was pointing his gun at the bus driver and at the male conductor. He posted himself at the lone door of the bus and got the day’s earnings from the conductor.

By that time, my nephew saw there were two other hooded men at the back of the bus moving forward. They were also wearing black bonnets with only their eyes showing and their faces concealed. The two robbers at the back of the bus had knives which they used to threaten passengers as they demanded for their valuables.

With presence of mind, my nephew tucked his Samsung Corby 2 mobile phone inside his brief where he believed it would be safe. He took his wallet from his pants’ back pocket and threw it inside his school backpack. My nephew was trying to protect and save the P1,500 he earned last week as a student assistant.

Already tense due to the developing situation, my nephew nervously got a P20 bill from his wallet, thinking he may need money to pay for his fare to get home. With least body movements – so that he won’t be noticed by the robbers my nephew covered his lap with his school backpack.

He nearly panicked when one of the knife-wielding robbers pulled away from him the school bag he was clutching. The robber rummaged through his bag and found his wallet. Unsatisfied with his loot, the robber barked at him to stand up and frisked him on his side and back obviously trying to feel where he stashed his other valuables.

He told the robber he had only books and school papers in his backpack and that there’s nothing more on him that would be of value to them. The robbers went through each of the passengers doing the same thing, searched below their seats and over the top compartments of the bus.

The three robbers each had a big loot bag where they stashed all the valuables they got from their bus heist. My nephew felt it was the longest bus ride he ever went through because the vehicle did not make any stop at all. It was only when the bus reached SM South Mall in Talon Dos in Las Piñas City when all the passengers were told to quietly disembark. The three robbers stayed in the bus that moved in a southward direction.

Quivering in fear, my nephew would later come home to his parents crying his heart out due to the nerve-wracking experience. I tried to console him by giving him the P1,500 he lost to the bus robbers.

The point of this story is, who feels safe when supposedly we are having the best of economic times under the administration of President Benigno “Noy” Aquino III. It is not as if no crimes were happening in the past. But when government authorities tell you that our country’s economy is growing by 7.1 percent and therefore people’s lives are getting better, there’s a disconnect somewhere.

The peace and order situation can’t get better when you have a police organization whose leadership has been placed in a state of suspended animation. It has become an open invitation to criminals to ply their nefarious trade with boldness.

It all started when P-Noy, out of the blue, suddenly announced his plans to make Philippine National Police (PNP) director-general Nicanor Bartolome bow out earlier than his scheduled mandatory age of retirement in March, 2013.

Initially mentioned was the possible appointment of Bartolome to become one of the undersecretaries in the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG). But Bartolome made the mistake of publicly declining the presidential offer by saying he prefers to finish his tour of duty.

The next presidential statement came later telling Bartolome that he would be placed on a “non-duty” status prior to his early retirement. The Commander-in-chief cited the need to install this early a replacement for Bartolome so that the new PNP chief would already be on board before the holding of the May 2013 mid-term elections.

DILG Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas II was subsequently quoted having recommended PNP Deputy Director General Alan Purisima to replace Bartolome. P-Noy earlier designated Purisima as head of the Safe And Fair Elections (SAFE) special task force. Safe for whom?

If the election is the only reason for it, why not just extend Bartolome’s tour of duty as PNP chief which is actually just two months extension? But P-Noy reportedly would hear none of it.

In the meantime, as the Christmas season attracts evil elements to commit crimes, we have to brace ourselves against big-time robberies also on the rise by those purportedly trying to raise campaign funds for the elections next year. Unfortunately for us, ‘tis the season for crimes.