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BY RUBY SILUBRICO
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Monday, December 26, 2016
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BRAVERY is not the absence of fear but action in the face of fear. This pretty much sums up the director of the Police Regional Office 6, Chief Superintendent Jose Llesis Gentiles.
But above anything else, he is an officer, a gentleman and a family man willing to sacrifice everything for the public good and his loved ones.
“A career in law enforcement would be perfect but the recent run of bad news about police officers has you reconsidering the thought. But despite the recent negative media coverage, police officers go beyond their call of duty and work on a daily basis. They devote their lives to the communities they serve,” says the regional police director.
Chief Superintendent Jose L. Gentiles was born on Nov. 19, 1962 in Cagayan de Oro City. He is a member of the Philippine Military Academy, Batch 1984.
The police general has two other brothers (he’s the middle child). His father was a businessman and his mother was a lawyer who first served as clerk of court then rose from the ranks to become a fiscal and later as judge.
Did you know that the general actually initially took up Bachelor of Science Major in Biology at Cagayan de Oro University? But on his second year in college a poster caught his attention. “Be a master!” part of it read, he recalled.
The poster also promised employment after graduation. “Join PMA!” it added.
The brave young Jose Gentiles decided to take a shot at this great opportunity and at age 17 joined the country’s premier military school, the Philippine Military Academy.
“I realized na okay pala dito,” Gentiles tells Panay News. “Wala akong mga kamag-anak na sundalo. Ang akin lang public service because my mother was a judge.”
He graduated from PMA in 1984 and 10 years later was assigned in Davao City. He was then a 2nd Lieutenant. President Rodrigo Duterte was then working as a fiscal there.
“He was really supportive of the military and police even back then. He would fellowship with the officials,” says Gentiles.
The police officer also had stints in his native Cagayan de Oro City, the Cordilleras, Misamis Oriental, Region 12, National Capital Region, Mandaluyong City, Ilocos Norte, and Cebu where he met the love of his life, Silyn Grace Sucalit.
The Gentileses were blessed with two children. Jon Mikael, 27, now works abroad while Johanna Sofia, 17, is in Grade 12.
“Malalaki na ang mga anak ko kaya ‘di na ako masyadong hinahanap. Yun lamang, may mga major events tulad ng graduation and other school activities na kailangan you have to show support to your children,” Gentiles stressed.
As a police officer assigned to any part of the country, how does he cope with the challenges brought about by being away from the family?
Before the advent of modern communications technology, it was difficult, he says. But not anymore.
The good general is thankful. He may be far from his loved ones but never felt more close to them. They are constantly in touch with one another.
Yes, he says, family is his first priority.
“Now, Facetime kami ng misis ko unlike before na medyo nami-miss ko ang aking pamilya. This time hindi na masyado,” he says.
Aside from his Master’s Degree in Management at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (1999), he attended trainings such as the Mandatory Career Courses PS Officers Senior Executive Course, Police Intelligence Advance Course, PS Officer Basic Course, PS Basic Intelligence Officers Course, and special trainings and development management programs.
He started serving the Western Visayas police force on July 1, 2016 and, among others, strengthened the police’s relationship with communities, the latest of which was a Christmas outreach program in villages surrounding the Police Regional Office 6 headquarters in Iloilo City.
Real heroes don’t wear capes. Police officers make a positive impact in people’s lives every day, from grand gestures at a birthday party to small acts of service like tying a man’s shoes. They go above and beyond their job duties to become real-life superheroes for society’s littlest citizens./PN
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