Some 60 police personnel currently assigned as investigators in the different police stations in Negros Oriental are converged at the Macias Sports Center in Dumaguete City for a 35-day Criminal Investigation Course.
The training reeled off Monday with the course director, Sr. Supt. Rey Lyndon Lawas, chief of the Regional Investigation & Detective Management Division of the Philippine National Police Regional Office 7 in the lead.
During an overview presentation of the course, Sr. Supt. Lawas explained the need for police investigators to enhance their skills on crime solution efficiency, more specifically in the conviction of cases.
He noted that in the past, once a case has been filed in court, the police considers a crime solved based on the PNP’s parameters.
But he cited reasons that leads to the dismissal of cases once filed in court, which means that the case has not prospered even if solved at the level of the police organization.
One of the reasons he noted was the failure of police investigators to appear in court during a trial.
Supt. Lawas warned that with the latest policies being adopted by the PNP hierarchy, a police personnel who cannot provide a valid reason for his absence in court especially on a drug-related case will be subjected to investigation and if found guilty, can be recommended for dismissal from the service.
The efficiency of the police can be gauged on the conviction rate of a particular unit, according to Lawas.
Once a suspect is released due to dismissal of a case, there is a tendency that he will repeat the same offense, he added.
“Your accomplishment is nothing if the case is dismissed”, Lawas said. In street slang, he mentioned the Cebuano phrase of “gibaligya ang kaso” or the case has been sold.
Lawas encouraged police investigators to appear in court during the hearing or trial of a case to erase suspicion of corruption by “selling” the case.
He disclosed that the PNP today is focused on two particular areas, namely, the increasing trend in crime incidents and the decrease in the conviction of criminal cases.
Many investigators, he lamented, have not completed a full-blown training on proper investigation and usually carry out their duties by mere experience alone.
The encouraging part is that the standard of police investigation today is updated as to several years back.
After completion of the course, the trainees are encouraged to be assigned to the investigation section of their respective police units and for them to do hands on and put their investigative skills.
Meanwhile, OIC PNP provincial director Sr. Supt. Mariano Natuel, Jr. said he believes the criminal investigation course will enhance the investigative prowess of the police personnel.
He said the training will indirectly help in the solution of crimes but more towards the conviction aspect and the filing of criminal cases.
Natuel admitted that over the years, the PNP missed out on the decreasing number of convictions due to the previous mindset that once the police has filed a case, the ball is now in the hands of the court.
On assignments, Natuel assured that the proper personnel are assigned to the right jobs and in the event of a transfer, there are reserved trained investigators.
The participants to the Criminal Investigation Course training are, aside from the Negros Oriental PNP Office, include those from the Siquijor PNP Office and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group. (PNA/JFP)
