Lacson backs shaming ‘shameful’ cops

Sen. Panfilo Lacson.
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / RICHARD A. REYES

Erring cops who keep embarrassing the Philippine National Police (PNP) deserve to be shamed, Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said on Wednesday.

This was how Lacson, former head of PNP, reacted when sought for comment on President Rodrigo Duterte’s public shaming of alleged rogue cops, who were presented to him in Malacañang on Tuesday.

READ: Duterte sends off ‘crook cops’ to Basilan with insults

“Alam mo ‘pagka rogue cops ang pinag-usapan, di ba shini-hame din nila ang PNP e (When we are talking about rogue cops, they also shame the PNP) so they deserve nothing less, that’s my opinion,” he said in an interview at the Senate.

“Shaming the cops, who keep on shaming the PNP, I think they deserve to be shamed. They deserve nothing less,” the senator added.

Lacson though expressed hope that the PNP leadership had validated all the charges hurled at the erring cops before they were presented to the President.

It would also be unfair, he said, to berate the cops if the charges against them had no basis.

READ: Bato vows to heed Lacson advice to focus on police affairs

Lacson also backed Duterte’s decision to deploy erring cops to other areas, like in Basilan, saying he also did it when he was the PNP chief.

“The main objective there is to uproot them from their areas of so-called influence. Kasi kung masyado na silang familiar at gumagawa sila ng kalokohan, (If they become too familiar in an area where they can do their illegal activities) whether they are transferred to Basilan, to Samar, as long as they are uprooted, para mawala ang impluwensya nila roon, para ang environment mabago (so they’ll lose their influence there and they will have a new environment), I’ll support that move. Nagkataon lang na sa Basilan dinala (It just so happened that they will be brought to Basilan),” he said.

The senator said the punishment being done by the PNP leadership against its erring members could either demoralize the organization or lift the morale of good cops when they see that the bad ones are being punished.

“Kasi contagious ‘yun. Infectious ‘yan. ‘Pag ang katabi mo ang daming kalokohang ginagawa tapos hindi napaparusahan, baka ikaw sabihin mo na rin, ito enjoying ito, sama na ako sa kanya. So that’s a good move–ang maparusahan ang dapat parusahan para di mapamarisan,” Lacson added.

(It’s contagious. It’s infectious. If a good cop is grouped with cops whose illegal activities go unpunished, he just might join them. So that’s a good move—punishing those not worthy of emulating.) IDL

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