Good deeds

Over the weekend, a news item caught my interest about a police general who did not spare his civilian driver supposedly involved in “fixing” gun license at his boss’ office. The driver messed around with the wrong boss who turned out to be Chief Superintendent Louie Oppus, the newly installed director of the Firearms and Explosives Office (FEO) of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

It would not be surprising if Oppus would be unforgiving for such offense. As the incumbent director of the FEO, Oppus is in charge of a PNP unit tasked to regulate and oversee the registration of firearms all over the country.

PNP director-general Alan Purisima assigned Oppus, a member of Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class 1984, to head the FEO on September 30 last year. Oppus will, however, only serve this post at PNP-FEO headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City very briefly as he is due to retire later this month.

Uncompromising with his ideals, Oppus is merely living up to his laurels and credentials through these years of dedicated service as a police officer. One of the highest recognitions he received was being conferred with one of the 2013 Presidential or Lingkod Bayan Awards “for his adherence to the highest standards of ethical behavior and meritorious service through pro-active and inclusive reforms in police operations.”

The annual search for Lingkod Bayan Awards is conducted by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) for Outstanding Public Officials and Employees. It became part of the Honor Awards Program (HAP) that the CSC conducts every year in the discharge of its mandate, among other things, to recognize and reward state officials and employees for their outstanding contributions and achievements in the delivery of public service.

This yearly award giving of the CSC was institutionalized under Executive Order No.334 signed on August 18,1988 by former President Corazon Aquino, the late mother of President Benigno “Noy” Aquino III. But it was former President Fidel V. Ramos who subsequently underscored the legal basis for the Lingkod Bayan Awards under the Administrative Code of 1987 in EO 508 he signed on March 31,1993.

The Presidential or Lingkod Bayan Awards is the highest of the three award categories given out each year by the CSC. This is conferred to an individual or group for exceptional or extraordinary contributions that had nationwide impact. Awardees receive a gold-gilded medallion expertly crafted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), a presidential plaque containing the citation and signature of the President of the Philippines, and a cash prize of P200,000.

The second highest – the Dangal ng Bayan Award – is conferred to an individual for performance of extraordinary act or public service and consistent demonstration of exemplary ethical behavior on the basis of his/her adherence to the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. Awardees receive a trophy designed by National Artist for Sculpture, Napoleon V. Abueva, and a cash prize of P200,000.

The CSC Pagasa Award, on the other hand, is given to an individual or group of individuals for outstanding contributions that directly benefit more than one department of the government. Awardees of this category also receive a gold-gilded medallion from BSP, a plaque containing the citation and signature of the CSC chairman, and a cash prize of P100,000.

CSC chairman Dr. Francisco Duque tapped me to be one of the judges for the 2010 selection of Lingkod Bayan awardees. From my personal experience, it was rigorous selection process going through voluminous documents to screening nominees to the final deliberations of who will be the awardees.

It was a tough task for us judges that year who included Duque, former Labor Secretary Nieves Confesor, former Finance Undersecretary Milwida Guevarra, and CSC director Ma.Luisa Salonga-Agamata who carried much of the staff work for us. P-Noy, just a few months into office, conferred the awards that year in rites held at Malacañang.

For this year’s nominations, the deadline for the search ended already last March 31. So by this time, the CSC is now in the process of putting together a new set of judges and pre-screening the hundreds of nominations from among the ranks of the more than 1.5 million government officials and employees, including the police and military all over the country.

The PNP actually got three of last year’s individual awards in the Presidential or Lingkod Bayan, two of them former members of the elite Presidential Security Group (PSG). One of them is Oppus and the other is Police Senior Superintendent Manuel Gaerlan. The third awardee from PNP is Chief Superintendent Rogelio Damazo of the PNP Information Technology Management Service.

As I’ve known them, Oppus and Gaerlan are straight shooters, literally and gun-wise. I first met them as young Police Inspectors (First Lieutenants in equivalent military rank). They were two of the three young police officers who were close-in escorts and aides-de-camp of FVR at Malacañang Palace.

Oppus then was serving as the chief of the security operations branch, and as chief of staff for intelligence of the PSG during the Ramos presidency from 1992-1998. Gaerlan, PMA Class 1985, was junior aide-de-camp.

As Presidential Lingkod Bayan awardee, Gaerlan was cited “for his deep commitment to service and resourcefulness as borne by the various innovative projects he initiated, scoring breakthroughs to better nationwide police operations.”

The third and youngest presidential close-in and aide-de-camp of FVR then is now Senior Superintendent Noel Baroceros, PMA Class 1986. Baroceros is currently the deputy spokesman of the PNP and concurrently the deputy chief of its Public Information Office in Crame. But he is not a Lingkod Bayan awardee – not yet anyway.

The Presidential Lingkod Bayan award though did not come at a better time for both Oppus and Gaerlan.

As young police officers then, Oppus, Gaerlan and Baroceros had FVR as the best teacher and role model for what they are now.

Rotating themselves 24-7 during FVR’s watch at the Palace, they helped ease the job of their Commander-in-chief while he was steering the ship of state during those six years. Good deeds come from good seeds.