Retired PNP general to push for multisector peace & order
By Jason B. Neola
A peace and order campaign with the full backing from the community is what retired Police Major General Omar Buenafe will help to operationalize in Naga City once elected as member of the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
Buenafe, the former Philippine National Police (PNP) Bicol regional director, said that it is a must that alongside Naga’s continuous achievement of economic growth is an all-inclusive peace and order campaign and highly effective law enforcement to be able to counteract or avert any situation that threatens to disrupt its peace and order condition.
“It is only appropriate that we should adopt certain strategies, which will enable us to further improve the peace and order situation in our Maogmang Lugar as an urban area with an economy that continues to boom,” said Buenafe, who spent 37 years in service and has various trainings on anti-criminality tactics.
His proactive stance was motivated by the award conferred to Naga when it was adjudged the country’s Most Competitive Component City for 2020 by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) after it was ranked Top 1 in Infrastructure Provision, Top 2 in Economic Dynamism, Top 3 in Government Efficiency, and Top 3 in Resiliency.
“A place with more business establishments like Naga where malls and shopping centers are almost crowding should come up with sound safety and security measures,” he said.
He said that aside from strengthened round-the-clock police visibility, setting up of police stations in strategic locations is also needed to allow PNP personnel to respond immediately to calls for assistance.
“We will also be needing state-of-the-art equipment and devices like police body cameras, bulletproof vests, police drones, and radios to modernize the Naga City Police Office,” he said.
On illegal drugs
Buenafe, who founded the Bicol Region Against Drugs (BRAD) during his tenure as PNP regional director in Bicol, said his advocacy against the substance started when he was the police director in Cebu City where he spearheaded the conduct of seminars and rallies in the barangays to raise the level of awareness of the public on prohibited drugs.
Buenafe said he plans to pursue similar activities in Naga to be able to get the support and participation of the communities. “That’s because our fight against illegal drugs is bloodless. It is going to be undertaken in a more persuasive and participative manner, not in violent way,” he said.
“We will be launching a comprehensive drive against illegal drugs that is why we need to include family members, relatives, peer groups, barangay officials and volunteers in the campaign,” he said.
The city has 8 barangays declared collectively by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, the Naga City Dangerous Drugs Board (NCDDB) and PNP as “drug-cleared.” These barangays are Tinago, Dinaga, San Francisco, Sta. Cruz, Bagumbayan Norte, Liboton, Carolina, and Panicuason.
Jose Importante, NCDDB executive director, said a barangay, in order to qualify as drug cleared, must be totally free from residents using or peddling illegal drugs and does not have a laboratory that manufactures illegal drugs.
“I appeal to my fellow Nagueños not to get involved in illegal drugs. Never allow also any of your friends, relatives, and family members to get hooked on this menace of society,” Buenafe, who also encouraged every Nagueño, especially the youths, to report to the police any drug-related incident in their community, said.