MANILA, Philippines — Former national police chiefs and now Senators Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa and Panfilo Lacson called on the Philippine National Police (PNP) to double up on efforts to solve the cases of the “missing ‘sabungeros’ (cockfighters),” warning that failure to do so will be a “big slap” to the national police force.
“I’m urging you to, please, double time your effort baka may ma-recover pa tayong buhay dito,” Dela Rosa, chairman of the Senate public order committee, said as he opened his panel’s investigation into the growing number of missing cockfighters on Thursday.
“Sana huwag kayong manghina sa investigation niyo, ‘wag kayong matakot kung sino man mababangga niyo kung may mababangga kayong malaking tao, influential na tao. ‘Wag kayong matakot…Double time your effort, bilisan niyo trabaho ninyo,” he added.
On Wednesday, the PNP reported two more missing persons, bringing the total number of disappeared cockfight enthusiasts to 31.
“Thirty-one reported missing persons as of latest count, without any trace apparently, is a big challenge to the PNP and the entire law enforcement community,” Lacson said.
“Failing to resolve these cases will be a big slap or an embarrassment to the PNP as well,” he added.
Lacson then expressed hope that the Senate inquiry would help resolve the cases of the missing cockfighters.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III, for his part, also called for the immediate resolution of the cases.
“It is said to be a billion-dollar industry, a great source of revenue for the country. Now the sport is being haunted by controversy due to the increasing number of missing persons allegedly involved in the said sport,” Sotto said in his opening statement.
“But again, cockfighting has cultural significance and it has brought entertainment and income to the Filipino. So the immediate resolution of the matter should be made,” he added. with Jericho Zafra, INQUIRER.net trainee