THE proposed P900-million “tokhang” budget for 2018 of the Philippine National Police should remain with the agency but “rechanneled for the purchase of needed equipment,” Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said Monday.
“Why not use the funds intended for ‘Oplan Double Barrel Reloaded’ for new cars and guns instead?” Recto said referring to what the PNP officially bills as the 2018 edition of its anti-drug campaign.
He said the PNP itself had admitted it lacked 12,399 patrol cars, 11,346 motorcycles, 50,668 service handguns and 41,136 long firearms, 132 police fast boats, and 902 special-purpose vehicles.
“Our police can better serve and protect the people if we’ll be able to pound this double barrel into cars, guns and boats,” Recto said.
He said the money earmarked for new equipment in the PNP’s P131.2-billion budget for 2018 “will hardly dent the logistical shortfalls it is facing.”
“Next year it will have a procurement budget only enough for 160 cars, 308 motorcycles, 20 special-purpose vehicles, 19 boats, 10,000 sidearms and 5,000 long firearms,” Recto said.
“I’ve been told that for P250,000 you can have a decent, powerful bike. So the P900 million can purchase 3,600 motorcycles, which would mean a minimum two each if distributed equally to all towns.”
Recto said P900 million could also buy at least 1,000 cars.
“If you buy them you increase by 25 percent the size of the PNP patrol car fleet,” Recto said.
He said policemen also needed bulletproof vests that must be made a standard feature of the police outfit “because these vests save lives.”
Improving police emergency hot lines would also allow the PNP to comply with the performance guarantee it had spelled out in the national budget that it would respond to distress calls in 15 minutes tops, Recto said.
But the advantages of a good 911 hotline would be forfeited if the police were not able to quickly react to calls for help for lack of manpower and equipment.
“Reaching the police in seconds is one thing. Having the police rush to the scene of the crime in minutes is another,” Recto said.
In an official report to the Senate, the PNP said it had 4,021 patrol cars, 4,545 motorcycles, 24 special purpose vehicles, 20 boats, 143,742 handguns and 54,184 assault rifles.
The PNP is asking for P131.2 billion for 2018, which is P19.6 billion higher than its 2017 budget of P111.6 billion.
