Metro Manila police chief urges fellow cops to lose beer bellies

The head of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) on Wednesday urged cops assigned in Metro Manila to stay fit and lose beer bellies to “keep up with the rigors of police work." NCRPO chief Director Roberto Rosales on Wednesday said he will personally supervise a physical fitness test that will be administered to all police officers in Metro Manila starting next week to ensure that all his subordinates are physically fit. “Being physically fit is not an option in the police service. It is a responsibility," he said in a statement sent to the media on Wednesday. Those who will fail the physical fitness test — which include exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, and road runs — “could be subject to attrition" based on police rules, according to Rosales. In last year’s physical fitness test, 218 of the 13,022 Metro Manila cops failed to meet fitness standards set by the police. These cops are currently facing evaluation, the statement said. In 2000, then Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Panfilo Lacson ordered cops to lose weight and have at least a 34-inch waistline. Current PNP chief Director General Jesus Verzosa has also ordered policemen earlier this year to go on diets due to the growing number of overweight cops he has observed. - ACC, RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV