“Itaga mo sa bato” is the first adage that comes to mind when we speak about stones. Or rocks. Cast it in stone. Indelible, unchangeable, unflinching.
Rock solid. Rock hard. Solid rock. Hard rock.
When President Duterte appointed then-Chief Superintendent Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa as the new Chief of the Philippine National Police, he might as well have proclaimed, to paraphrase the Bible, that “upon this Rock I will build my crusade against crime”
I had the opportunity last week to accompany our Chairman, Manuel V. Pangilinan, or MVP, to a meeting with Director General “Bato” at Camp Crame. Also composing part of the MVP Group contingent were PLDT-Smart Foundation (PSF) President Esther O. Santos, Metro Pacific Vice-President for PR and Corporate Communications Melody del Rosario, Makati Medical Center Foundation Executive Director Marge Barro, PLDT AVP and CRB Head, Public Sector, Joy Rodriguez Hilao, and PLDT AVP and CRM Head, Public Sector, Dennis Magbatoc.
In that meeting we discussed the Group’s intentions in assisting the PNP particularly with regard to the 911 hotline and long-term programs for drug rehabilitation. We also discussed ways to partner with the PNP hospitals and the modernization of their facilities.
One of the programs that the PNP Chief wanted expedited was the National Operations Center. He shared that in his visits abroad his counterparts from other countries would bring him to their own national operations centers. He would want to replicate that facility here.
One of the more serious discussions dwelt with the issue of national security vis-a-vis cyber security and how our country has been vulnerable to cyber attacks, particularly in the realm of financial security. The attacks on our systems reached a feverish pitch when the arbitral award on the West Philippine Sea was about to be released.
The meeting was also occasion for PLDT-SMART Foundation to turn over a check signifying a part of its commitment to the PNP-PSF Educational Fund. The PSF has been supporting the program for PNP dependents since 2008.
All in all it was a very fruitful meeting. General Bato is reputed to be like some kind of Godfather of Rock, harsh and unapproachable. Nothing can be farther from the truth. He is a warm, approachable and endearing fellow, but don’t let that soft side fool you. He may be warm, but he can be also be fiery hot when it comes to the serious business of combatting and preventing crime, particularly the current drug menace.
And that you can cast in stone.