Ang tama, ipaglaban. Ang mali, labanan. These are the words which have guided Panfilo Morena Lacson’s career in government, which has spanned 50 years since his graduation from the Philippine Military Academy in 1971. 
Bakit siya tumatakbo sa pagka-Pangulo? Lacson ran for President in 2004 as an independent and managed to garner ten percent of the total votes cast.
His decision to run then was questioned by those in the opposition because Fernando Poe Jr., decided to contest the Presidency as proxy for his best friend Erap.
The opposition’s strategy then was to rely on FPJ’s popularity with the masa and prevent Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from serving another six years as President.
Recall that GMA reneged on her promise to Cory and Cardinal Sin to serve only the remaining term of Erap who was ousted in EDSA 2.
Lacson has been a Senator since 2001 when he first ran after he had to take early retirement from the Philippine National Police after GMA wrested the Presidency away from Joseph Estrada.
He is assured of reelection if he ran for another term in the 2022 election but was prevailed upon by the group of retired senior officers of the AFP to run for President again in January of this year.
As the senior Senator, he could’ve campaigned and won to become Senate President but decided to seek the Presidency instead.
Why? Lacson has always answered the higher calling. He could’ve faded away from public view after his stint as PNP Chief but he decided to vie for elective office instead in 2001.
For him, this was the best way to continue his public service career where his impact would be felt the most.
Lacson placed 10th in the 2001 Senate race largely due to his excellent record as a member of the Philippine Constabulary, which he joined after graduation from the PMA, which later became the Philippine National Police, where he also served with distinction in different…
…postings in Isabela, Laguna and Cebu.
He became a household word when he was appointed by then Vice-President Joseph Estrada as Chief of the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission’s (PACC) Task Force Habagat.
He reached the pinnacle of his law enforcement career when he was appointed PNP Chief by President Estrada in 1999. He also concurrently headed the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force which replaced the PACC.
Lacson’s stint as PNP Chief hasn’t been matched to this day in terms of its approval ratings during his tenure. First, he ordered a strict no-take policy among the officers and men of the national police force.
Second, he instituted a strict physical fitness requirement with a maximum waistline of no more than 34 inches.
Next, insurance companies heaved a sigh of relief after he ordered all policemen who were utilizing recovered carnapped vehicles as their service vehicles to return them immediately to Camp Crame for proper disposition.
Lastly, Lacson issued a stern warning about Kotong Cops who collected bribe money on a regular basis from public utility vehicle drivers and traders who transported goods from the provinces to Metro Manila and were routinely obligated to pay highway patrol and local police…
…office checkpoints in their respective jurisdictions. This immediately had an impact on the price of the commodities these traders were selling in Metro Manila.
Why the focus on kotong? Ping, as he is fondly called by family and friends, never forgot the image of his father coming home from a hard day’s work plying the Imus-Lawton route in his jeepney.
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