Gov’t allots P170M to spruce up stinky police stations

Stinky and dilapidated police stations will hopefully be a thing of the past with the government’s P170-million “Oplan Dignity” project.

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas said some 1,700 run-down police stations nationwide would need a lot of fixing “to give lawmen dignity in their place of work.”

The police stations will be given P100,000 each for their “renovation and rehabilitation.”

“[Police chiefs] will be given a ‘menu’ for which they will use the funds. For example, they can have the roofs fixed, which would cost P650 per square meters, including the GI sheet, insulation and support,” Roxas said, following the ceremonies marking the 15th anniversary of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption at the Philippine National Police Headquarters at Camp Crame.

Roxas said fixing the toilets would cost some P1,030.

“This P100,000 will be given to the police stations so that they will have a better workplace and we can expect better service from them,” he said in Filipino.

To bring back dignity

Roxas said he expected that the repair on the police stations would enhance public acceptance and perception of the office and the personnel manning them, a statement from the Department of the Interior and Local Government said.

“The objective is to bring dignity back to the PNP officers’ place of work. This way, this would also renew the public’s perception of our policemen,” he said.

“It’s difficult to have no resting place, ventilation or roof in the PNP stations. This renovation would start with partial repair of the structure,” Roxas said.

Roxas said more funds would be earmarked for bigger police stations needing repairs.