“Go get them all! Let us clean up Catanduanes,” thus went Governor Patrick Alain T. Azanza’s marching orders to the new police provincial director, PCol. Virgilio R. Buena, during the turnover ceremonies at Camp Francisco Camacho last Friday.
The provincial chief executive said that this is just a continuation of his administration’s “very serious” work to eradicate all criminalities and all illegal behaviors and transactions, including corruption in government.
“Make sure all illegal elements are taken out of the province,” he told the new police director as he made his standing order very clear.
Azanza was responding to PCol. Buena’s unveiling of his mission as head of the Catanduanes police, one anchored on three fundamental pillars: seamless synergy with the local government units, bringing the police closer to the people, and a relentless campaign against illegal activities.
“Under my leadership, the PNP will be a proactive partner to Governor Azanza and all municipal mayors,” he explained. “We will ensure that our security operations are fully aligned with the programs of the provincial government.”
Likewise, he bared that the local police would shift from being a force that is simply “seen” to a force that is “felt.”
“I want our officers to be fixtures in the community – accessible, approachable, and dependable,” the police director stressed, noting that the true measure of a police force is not only the number of arrests made but the level of trust it enjoys in the community.
“To those who seek to destroy our youth through illegal drugs and illegal gambling, exploit our environment, or disrupt our peace through any form of criminality, we will be your worst adversary,” he thundered. “Our campaign will be surgical, persistent and uncompromising. There will no room for lawlessness in Catanduanes.”
In calling on every member of the police to take an extra mile under a new standard, PCol. Buena said it will no longer be enough to just show up for duty.
“When a citizen is in distress, do not just take a report – provide comfort. When a community is in need, do not just stand guard – lend a hand. We are here to serve with a heart. If you see a way to help a Catandunganon, do not wait for an order. You act! Be the hero they expect you to be,” he emphasized.
Buena served as the chief of the Regional PNP Coordination and Development Unit (RPCADU) in Northern Mindanao and held the same position in Iloilo City prior to his assignment to Catanduanes.
In his brief remarks, Bicol PNP Regional Director PBGen. Erosito N. Miranda expressed his wish that Buena would get the same treatment given to former PD Cereno.
He urged the men and women of the local police not to put to waste the high satisfaction ratings given to the PNP under a latest survey.
The change in leadership does not mean the one who left performed less and the one coming in will do better, he stated as he ordered those present to continue to be proactive and preventive and engage in outreach programs.
Later, the outgoing director, together with his wife and two children, received retirement honors during a testimonial dinner at the Capitol Dome for his 34 years, two months and four days of dedicated police service.