MANILA, Philippines -- To help fill in the lack of schoolteachers this coming school year, the Philippine National Police (PNP) is assigning some police personnel to teach classes in some far-flung areas around the country.

During Tuesday’s launching of the “Pulis Ko, Teacher Ko (My Cop, My Teacher)” program, Director Leopoldo Bataoil, chief of the PNP Directorate for Police Community Relations (DPCR) said on Tuesday their goal was to assign two policemen-teachers in areas where communist insurgency thrives.

Bataoil said that schools in those areas lack teachers because of the security situation.

At present, the program would cover Regions 1, 2, 3, 4-A, 4-B and 5. The initial batch already received an orientation from the Department of Education (DepEd), Bataoil said.

The policemen were previous holders of education degrees prior to becoming members of the PNP. They come mostly from the regions’ Regional Mobile Group (RMG) units, which are at the forefront of the PNP’s counter-insurgency program.

“We want to use the talents of the PNP in a positive manner,” Bataoil said.

He said the policemen would still be teaching in their uniforms and would carry a firearm “only for security purposes.”

Bataoil said fortunately, schoolchildren did not fear their policemen-teachers. “The schoolchildren actually find it enjoyable,” he said.

Ophelia Eustaquio of the DepEd’s Bureau of Elementary Education said the police personnel, men and women, would serve as substitute teachers in the five key learning areas of Filipino, English, Makabayan, Math and Science.

“The program is a big help since we lack teachers, especially in far-flung areas,” Eustaquio said.

"This is bringing the whole government closer to our people," Bataoil said.

Bataoil launched the program in 2007 when he was commander of the Region 1 police command.

“I noticed that most of the time, our policemen were doing nothing. So I told them to come out of their foxholes and do other services to the community,” Bataoil said.

He said initial results have been encouraging. “The result is that we are bringing the government closer to the people and win hearts and minds without firing a single shot.”

He said they would launch the program in other regions soon.

Police Officer 1 Angelo Guyab, one of the police-teachers, said the work is purely voluntary.

"Nobody compelled us to do this. We’re volunteering in areas where there are no teachers,” he said. With Thea Alberto, INQUIRER.net