Negros Oriental police Drug test, inspection of firearms conducted

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines — A hundred policemen of the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (NOrPPO) have undergone a random drug test yesterday, while personnel of the NAPOLCOM-Region 7 conducted an inspection and audit of the policemen’s roster and their service firearms.

NOrPPO OIC-director, Sr. Supt. Mariano Natuel Jr, sent two teams from the PNP Crime Laboratory, headed by Chief Insp. Josephine Llena, to Bayawan City and another team to Tanjay City for the surprise drug test due to reports that some policemen were users of the prohibited drugs and possibly coddlers of drug pushers.

Last year, at least five policemen in Negros Oriental were dismissed from service after proven positive of illegal drugs use and only one was demoted, Llena said, adding that this time there were about two who might be found positive of  drug use, if information from an insider was based.

Llena said the presence of the testing teams was a surprise to the policemen who were confined in one room, attending to a briefing conducted by the NAPOLCOM-7 personnel.

Assisted by members of the Provincial Anti-Illegal Drugs-Special Operations Task Group (PAID-SOTG), headed by Insp. Jay Ryan Orapa, the random drug testing went on smoothly and not one policeman was able to get out of the room without submitting a urine sample to the Crime Lab.

Llena said that, in case of doubts, the concerned policeman  may contest the findings by requesting for another accredited laboratory to conduct further examination, but strictly using the same urine sample.

She explained that the time of the collection is what matters most if  NOrPPO was bent on removing the “bad eggs” from the organization.

Meanwhile, the NAPOLCOM-7 personnel, who inspected and audited the NOrPPO roster and their issued firearms, were divided into three teams to cover the three districts of  Negros Oriental province.

Assigned to the 3rd district was Insp. Salvador Belo III who said that all policemen were required to report personally for the audit and for matching of the serial numbers of issued firearms with those in possession of the policemen, based on records.

Belo told The FREEMAN that all policemen and their service firearms have been accounted for, as he enjoined them to be the role models in their respective police stations, and avoid engaging in activities that will only destroy the organization.

He showed a policeman’s nude photo, taken when the latter was still a civilian, which was uploaded in the social media by his friends. Another is a story of a police officer who wants to blackmail his mistress using their  sex video.

Belo further advised policemen, who have live-in partners, to settle permanently or get married so that their children will enjoy the benefits expected of them. (FREEMAN)