BONTOC, Mountain Province – Provincial Police Director Senior Superintendent Allen S. Ocden rallied local officials and the people to support the Duterte administration’s unrelenting and uncompromising peace initiatives to allow the influx of investments that will spur socio-economic growth and development province-wide.
Ocden claimed that he recently received a memorandum from Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Anyo directing all local government officials and the police to work together in curbing the proliferation of drugs, gambling, illegal logging and illegal mining in their areas of jurisdiction for the realization of lasting peace in the countryside and provide the younger generation with better places to study, live, work and do business.
“We need the support of everyone for the realization of lasting peace around the country. We want to make it clear to our barangay, municipal and provincial officials that we also need their cooperation to curb illegal activities that compromise the efforts to protect our natural resources and the reign of peace in our villages,” Ocden stressed.
The police official underscored the contents of the memorandum will be cascaded down to the barangay level so that local officials will understand that their failure to cooperate with the marching orders from higher authorities will be meted out the appropriate sanctions once they will be found to be remised in their assigned duties and responsibilities in the future.
According to him, even the municipal chiefs of police were also issued the appropriate directives pursuant to the mandate handed down by the higher authorities, especially in relation to the government’s aggressive anti-drug campaign and the efforts to ensure the preservation and protection of the natural resources within their areas of jurisdiction.
Ocden, who traces his roots from Bontoc and Besao towns, pointed out Mountain Province is one of the few forested provinces in the country to date, thus, concerned sectors must value the importance of the efforts by those outside the province to inculcate to the minds of the residents and visitors the importance of the presence of forest covers in the maintenance of a pristine environment which is one of the attractions that convince nature-lovers to visit scenic tourist destinations provincewide.
He emphasized it is high time that people embrace the proper direction by getting rid of petty vices that often lead to simple conflicts that affect the reign of peace in a certain place aside from being vigilant on illegal logging and illegal mining activities done within their midst as people are obligated to report such matters to the police for immediate action.
Ocden explained that if drugs proliferate in a barangay or a municipality, it will be the barangay captain or municipal mayor who will be at fault, if there is rampant criminality in a certain area, it will be again the punong barangay and municipal mayor that will be blamed that is what is best is for all concerned stakeholders to work together in achieving lasting peace in the province.
He assured local officials and the people of the province that personnel of the Mountain Province Provincial Police Office and the different municipal police stations will always be ready to extend the needed assistance for the sake of a peaceful province since Mountain Province has been ranked second to Batanes as the most peaceful province in the country.
By HENT