Res Gestae
PNP Badge of Honor (4)
(Note: The Police Regional Office 6 held the 1st Oratorical Cup with the theme “PNP Badge of Honor” on May 13, 2009. And, in recognition to the laudable performance of all the contestants, I am yielding this space for the oration pieces of 17 police officers who participated in the said contest.
This next oration piece was delivered by POI Jeramae C Rio of the Regional Public Information Office, Camp Martin Delgado, Fort San Pedro, Iloilo City.
Rio is a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Criminology (Magna Cum Laude) at Bago City State College. She joined the Philippine National Police on October 5, 2005.
Presently, she is enrolled at West Visayas State University for her Master in Criminology.)
My Badge, My Honor
How do you find me today? No, it has nothing to do with my glowing face. It’s not even my sexy body which is the result of my regular visits to our gym. Any guess? Clue? Okay, it has something to do with my uniform. Yes, you got it right. I do not have my badge.
Honorable judges, officers, fellow contestants, ladies and gentlemen, good morning!
It was in my Basic Recruit Course when I received my first set of uniform – GOA, pistol belt, shoes, nameplate, and cap. And of course I got my badge too. I was happy just like a first-timer should. But, my badge did not even get so much of my attention. Why should it be? I could not find any reason to be especially attached to it. Since then I just see to it that every time I wear my uniform, my badge is there together with the other accoutrements.
Then last month we had our badge of honor of ceremony. As part of my job in Regional Public Information Office, I captured the event on camera. As I was recording the proceedings, I was deeply impressed when my fellow police officers touched their badge with their right hand while renewing their oath of office.
That experience led me to do a research. And these were my discoveries:
DILG Secretary Ricardo Puno, during the same ceremony at Camp Crame, emphasized that “the police badge is a visible symbol of service and a symbolic instrument of public faith. It is not a symbol of authority as some have usually thought.”
With that, the good secretary also stressed that we are public servants and it is incumbent upon us to uphold public trust at all times.
Police Director General Jesus Versoza, on his part, underlined “that th(is) badge of honor that we proudly wear in our uniform is the symbol of our worthiness to serve and protect the people. It is also the source of our authority to uphold and enforce the law without fear or favor.”
Let me give you a few examples.
Although we cannot ask him anymore of what really happened and why he did it, Senior Police Officer III Rafael Managuit made us proud that fateful day of March 31. Quoting Francis Allan Angelo of the Daily Guardian, Managuit “sacrificed his life to save his fellow officers and civilians when a grenade exploded inside their office.”
Who could forget POIII Hernando Saguan of San Miguel Police Station? Saguan was wounded in a firefight with robbers who were preying Christian Llyod Javellana of Philippine Foremost Milling Corporation on December 23, 2008. His gallantry foiled a crime. His bravery won him the trust not only of Javellana but of the people who have heard his story.
By the way, do you also know that police badges are called shields? They are known as shields because according to Thomas Nerney, a retired New York detective, “police badges were originally meant to be just that: a shield to guard the heart.”
And badges literally saved lives too. Listen to this.
“In January, Andrew Taylor, an officer of Los Angeles Police Department, was shot in the armpit, and another round (was) embedded in his vest. But two more bullets were deflected, one by his holstered handgun and another by his badge.”
“In Berkeley, California., in May 2005, a bullet pierced the sterling silver badge worn by Police Officer Darren Kacalek. The bullet lodged in his bulletproof vest, bruising his heart. According to Sgt. Mary Kusmiss of the City of Berkeley Police Department, the badge, just an eighth of an inch thick, slowed the bullet’s velocity, thus saving the life of police officer Darren Kacalek.
Fellow police officers, ladies and gentlemen, this is a great year for me for, among other things, I learned more about this piece of metal. I learned that my badge, our badge, is a symbol of our legal authority as police officers and our worthiness to serve and protect the people. As such, we must ensure that peace and order are maintained at all times and render the highest form of public service for our fellowmen.
Fellow police officers let us keep our badges unsullied. Let us never swerve from our solemn oath of office, violate our vows or betray the public trust.
Fellow police officers, let us always remember that we are a different breed of public servants. We are different because we have a badge. Let us be proud of it. Let us wear our badge with honor! As for me, my BADGE will always be my HONOR!
(Next issue: “PNP Badge of Honor” by POII Rowena E Fuentebella of Bacolod City Police Office.)