
BY RUBY P. SILUBRICO & JEN BAYLON
ILOILO City – The Guimaras Police Provincial Office (GPPO) has a new director.
She is Colonel Rhea E. Santos, who was the chief of the Regional Logistics and Research Development Division of Police Regional Office 6.
Santos is the first woman to lead a provincial office in the region.
She officially assumed her new assignment after a simple turnover ceremony at Camp Gen. Martin Teofilo B. Delgado in this city on Friday, Jan. 12, led by regional director Brigadier General Sidney N. Villaflor.
Santos replaced Colonel Richard Baluis after his two-year stint in GPPO and will be temporarily assigned to PRO-6.
The new provincial director spent most of her career in Western Visayas, and she is not new to Guimaras.
She was once police chief of Molo and Jaro Police Stations, then became head of the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office-Intelligence Division.
Santos said her main thrusts are to maintain the province’s peace and order and continue the fight against illegal gambling and illegal drugs.
“Tahimik ang probinsya ng Guimaras; that’s why we have to maintain it. Wala namang drug groups sa area, pero still, we would not be complacent, baka may maka lusot. I have to try my best and work hard for the peace and order of this province,” Santos told Panay News.
Santos was thankful to the Guimaras provincial government for choosing and trusting her to lead the GPPO.
Meanwhile, Villaflor conveyed confidence in Santos, citing her wealth of experience, and emphasized the importance of continued community support./PN