SOCO and sunog

I have just finished teaching a crash course on “Strategic Communications” for officers and personnel of the Philippine National Police Crime Lab, the mother unit and home of the popularized “SOCO,” and I discovered that there is a gray area or a “Zone of the unknown” in terms of legislation or ordinances prohibiting people from crossing the yellow tape we all know as the “Police Line” or “Crime Scene.”

Initially, I saw and read about proposed ordinances in the City of Manila placing a P2,000 peso fine while someone in Naga proposed a P5,000 fine or 30 days in jail for crossing a police line or unlawfully entering a crime scene. It is not clear if a national law has been passed to penalize such a serious violation, but my students from the PNP Crime Lab and representatives of SOCO units from all over the country were of the same opinion that a national law needs to be passed with stiff penalties.

Thanks to television and movies most of us have an idea or know that civilians and unauthorized people are not allowed to cross the “Police Line,” which is often a crime scene, because we could “bring in evidence or take away evidence” from the scene. You don’t even have to do it intentionally. You could simply introduce it through your shoes, clothes, falling hair, etc. There is also a need for the PNP leadership to train and discipline first responders to properly secure a crime scene and strictly prevent anyone from entering the area particularly relatives who end up in hysterics while disturbing or destroying possible evidence.

I suggested to the officers that they should conduct a campaign on the matter as well as set up not just a police line or yellow tape but to come up with tents or “blinds” that will cover a crime scene as big as the bus at the Luneta massacre so that minors are not exposed to ghastly sights, while “Uziseros” or onlookers don’t end up creating a traffic jam.

*** The beauty of the interactive training I’ve been doing with the PNP is that we all learn “our stories” that are worth telling or that could be helpful for them as well as the public. In one class, I discovered that in the midst of the war on drugs, police officers are really affected, bothered and visibly saddened every time a current or former police officer is killed in a buy-bust operation. Their shame and pain is almost as if their own brother turned out to be a criminal and was killed by your officemates. All I could teach them was that the day they broke the law was the day they stopped being police officers. Treat them as criminals who bring shame and dishonor to the uniform and the service.

Another startling discovery was the state of women in the service. It is difficult enough for women to compete in a male dominated environment, but what makes it tragic is when their marriages suffer or end because their husbands don’t support them and are taken over by jealousy and doubt. Had I not badgered several students as part of the training, I would not have discovered this hidden secret and because it has been hidden for so long, the leadership of the PNP never had a chance to study and address the problem. I just hope that Chief PNP “Bato” De la Rosa is man enough and gentleman enough to deal with this painful reality within the PNP.

Years, back I already heard of women officers who were shelved or assigned in dead end posts while their promotion, in two cases the rank of one-star general or something like that was given to a PMAer male classmate. Yes, the PNP is still a man’s world, but again none of them would be around if a woman had not given them life! Let’s show some respect for what the women in the PNP have accomplished and contributed.

*** Remember those silent movies where the characters discover there is a fire and proceeds to throw everything at the flames in order to put it out? But what happens is a comedy of errors where they end up throwing more fuel into the fire, they run for fire extinguishers that start strong then suddenly run out while other guys bring in a garden hose but the water pressure is so weak the water barely goes two feet from the nozzle! Then the neighbors come over with their own fire extinguishers but don’t even know how to operate them? Trust me it’s not funny when you see it in real Life!

I recently saw a brand new restaurant in Barrio Kapitolyo that was just beginning their soft opening get hit by a kitchen fire. Lucky for them it happened at about 8 a.m. and there was a fire station and BFP people inside Barrio Kapitolyo that managed to get to the scene soon enough before the restaurant really burned to the ground. Still, all the smoke and water used caused serious damage and a setback on their opening date. Beyond the comedy of errors, it occurred to me that more has to be done about fire prevention and preparedness in places like Barrio Kapitolyo or UP Village that are still largely residential communities but with unusually high concentration of restaurants and commercial establishments situated in houses and not commercial structures that are purposely built for restaurants or warehousing.

In the meantime, please consider buying a five lbs fire extinguisher for your car that also doubles as a protective weapon, a 10 lbs extinguisher for your kitchen, a 20 lbs plus extinguisher where bigger fires can happen. Remember to aim the extinguisher foam at the base or source of the fire for quick results. We also recently bought several plastic buckets used in construction sites and filled them halfway with fine sand, which is also good for putting out starter fires. If you’re hesitating about the expense, think about it this way – you’re letting go of a few thousand pesos versus losing millions of pesos and possibly people’s lives.