NEW SWAT MEMBERS. Brig. Gen. Joselito T. Esquivel, Jr., Police Regional Office in Caraga director (right), leads the distribution of awards and certificates to 48 police officers who graduated from Special Weapons and Tactics Course on Friday (March 6, 2020). Three female police officers received excellence awards for outstanding performance. (Photo courtesy of PRO-13 Information Office)
BUTUAN CITY – Three female police officers of the Police Regional Office of Caraga Region (PRO-13) topped the recently-concluded Special Weapons and Tactics Course (SWAT Course).
In the graduation ceremony held on Friday (March 6), PRO-13 director, Brig. Gen. Joselito T. Esquivel Jr. cited Pat. Peachtche T. Cepeda, Cpl. Ginalyn S. Sanchez and Cpl. Romelyn T. Berido for their "excellent performance" during the course.
A total of 48 police officers from the entire region graduated from the Special Weapons and Tactics Course.
Cepeda received the Award of Excellence for having obtained the highest rating in class; Sanchez was awarded for obtaining the highest rating in individual practical drills both in pistol and rifle; and Berido for attaining the highest rating in a physical fitness test and other physical training during the course.
Esquivel commended the new graduates and urged them to "serve the people" and reminded them to live up with the motto “death before dishonor.”
“The very aim of this training is to enhance your effectiveness, efficiency and tactical proficiency in dealing with response scenarios and armed encounters. Do not downplay or take for granted your roles. The Filipino people deserve nothing less,” he said.
In a statement on Friday, Maj. Renel Serrano, PRO-13 chief information officer, said the new graduates of SWAT Course consisted of 44 male and four female police officers. They come from the different police provincial offices, police mobile battalions, and from the police office in Butuan City.
Serrano also cited the new SWAT graduates for “displaying their capabilities and demonstrating what SWAT teams can do when deployed to handle high-risk encounters and close-quarter battles, a tactical maneuver that involves physical confrontation.” (PNA)
