mamang pulis

R-PSB cops in Samar succeeding in their mission

October 10, 2023 Alfred P. Dalizon 329 views

SamarMEMBERS of the Revitalized-Pulis sa Barangay (R-PSB) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) are giving back to poor residents of Northern Samar what the New People’s Army cannot give them literally.

A testament to this are the 3,000 residents of Palapag, Northern Samar who were given free medical, dental consultation and haircut as part of the PNP’s R-PSB program.

The free medical, dental, optical and Operation Tuli program was launched in 31 barangays in Palapag under the supervision of the PNP Directorate for Police-Community Relations headed by Major General Edgar Alan O. Okubo.

The official and the president of Donate Philippines, Myrna J. Reyes, attended the medical and dental services in the province.

Okubo said the program benefited a total of 3,114 Palapag residents, who availed of the free medical consultation, tooth extraction, free circumcision, ear piercing and haircut.

The residents also received free vitamins and other medicines as well as eyeglasses, loot bags, brand-new slippers and shoes, clothes and blankets.

Porridge was also served to the residents during the program.

An estimated P1.758 million worth of services and goods were provided to the local residents without any government funds involved, said Okubo, who cited the help they received from Donate Philippines and the Patrol Party List group in their latest program.

Upon instruction of PNP chief General Benjamin C. Acorda Jr., the PNP-DPCR director is supervising a ‘whole-of-nation approach’ of the force in Northern Samar to beat the insurgency in the province.

Okubo is leading the government’s move in the province with the implementation of the vaunted R-PSB program in the area amid President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ R. Marcos Jr.’s optimism the NPA problem in the area will be finally resolved by the end of the year.

“In consonance with the directives of President Marcos and the Chief PNP to end the insurgency in Samar, we are consolidating all concerned agencies and other stakeholders as well as local barangay captains in Northern Samar to support the R-PSB personnel that will be immersed in their areas,” said Okubo.

A total of 583 R-PSB-trained personnel of the Police Regional Office 8 (PRO 8) are now on a mission in Samar.

Okubo said the R-PSB personnel, who have been turned over to respective barangay captains, will be immersed in Northern Samar villages for six months to address the possible lack of basic government services needed in the barangays through the conduct of Need Assessment Surveys.

Okubo described Samar as the ‘last bastion of insurgency’ in Eastern Visayas. Under the R-PSB program, police personnel are being deployed to ‘live with the people, eat with the people and work with the people in the barangay.’

He said the program aims to sustain the gains of the government programs, prevent the resurgence of insurgency and insulate the unaffected communities.

Acorda has ordered Okubo to implement the R-PSB program nationwide in order for the police to further gain the support of the people living in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantageous Areas (GIDAS) like Samar.

Under their R-PSB program, police have been assigned in communities in Samar known as hotbeds of insurgency.

The presence of the NPA, which is known for exacting so-called ‘revolutionary tax’ and attacking companies who fail to heed their demand, is a major factor why investors are shying away from Northern Samar.

The R-PSB program has seen policemen building roads, small bridges, artesian wells, water systems, schools and even small churches while providing government service to the poorest of the poor.

At present, a total of 1,787 R-PSB-trained PNP personnel are now deployed in former NPA ‘hotbeds’ in the countryside with a mission to prevent the rebels from regaining the people’s support in these poor communities, the Journal Group learned.

AUTHOR PROFILE