GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 14 Dec) – The Philippine National Police (PNP) has assigned an additional 297 new policemen in Region 12 as part of its continuing personnel buildup.
Chief Supt. Manuel Labador, acting Region 12 police director, said the new police recruits – 220 males and 77 females – are among the applicants from various parts of the region that qualified or passed the recent screening conducted by the PNP’s recruitment board.
He said the policemen, who assumed the rank of Police Officer 1, formally took their oath of appointments on Wednesday in simple rites held at the police regional headquarters in Barangay Tambler here.
“These new breed of law enforcers had undergone vetting application process conducted by the recruitment boards and were able to pass the rigorous screening,” Labador said in a statement.
The official said they were “carefully chosen” out of hundreds of college graduates who applied under the 2013 PO1 Regular and Attrition Recruitment Program.
Labador said the new policemen will immediately undergo the mandatory one-year public safety field training program at the regional police’s training school in Purok Lanton, Barangay Apopong here.
“They will go through series of physical and mental exercises to properly prepare them for actual duty and also hone their mental and physical abilities,” he said.
He said the training program will also address the emotional and spiritual needs of the police officers.
“Additionally, they will endure transformation processes that would certainly help them meet the necessary standards of being a police officer,” Labador said.
Owing to this, the official said they are optimistic that the new set of policemen would become assets of the government and the PNP in maintaining peace and order in areas where they will be assigned later on.