Ballad of Police Officer Rollo V.
It was early morning after the feast day of Black Nazarene when the smoke from burnt garbage rise up on the street. It shadowed the 'jeepneys' and dilapidated buses that ply the crossing of Edsa and West Avenue. Rollo Vitug, an aging 45 year old policeman dreamed that day as he watched the intersection moved slowly during the early morning rush hour. He dreamed of having a nice Filipino family. He dreamed God would pity on him and gifted him and his wife one happy child they could cherish and who would look after them when they grow old. Several months ago, they had done the craziest dance during the feast of Obando together with hundreds of infertile couple with the sole purpose of wanting a miracle child. They held atop their heads replicas of Virgin Mary and waived on their hands christian amulets just so to express their extreme desire of wanting a little child on their arms. He spent the rest of the day untangling the traffic mess in the busy intersection after the mid day onslaught of heavy rain. He swam across the flooded street and helped the city public works unclogged the nearby esteros. They removed three discarded refrigerator housing, 2 old ten wheeler tires, a tree branch and a half ton of various hazardous garbage.
It was early dusk when the smoke finally disappeared and the countless buses began to ferry the million of passengers that converged at the city's intersection. He saw group of school children that ran towards the row of school buses and made funny faces as they pressed their mouth and cheek in foggy windows-tired students that squeezed their bodies inside packed buses just to go home. Beggars. Vendors. Prostitutes. People with nowhere to go. People that stood still for hours unsure of destination. The night become alive as the green city light illuminated the city. The bend has a life of its own as it unfolded in her palm the young girls with far away look in their eyes. Girls with painted faces and 70s deluded gestures-with eyelash longer than the length of their cheap Caronia nails, and aah those jet black hair that was thirty inches long. Police officer Vitug had no memory of these beautiful girls that walked passed him. He knew them among the shadows as they extrude their pale full lips. Maybe he was still dreaming. Maybe not. But the night hold many promises that sometimes endure in the wee hours of the morning.He was dead tired. Wanting to go home. Yet the call of his duty extend beyond the unimaginable. "Hey officer you should be home," said the young beautiful prostitute beside her. "Or you can go home with me for the night." Rollo Vitug just simply nodded his head and walked on. He walked in many dark places. But that night he walked in a universe so dark that he felt lost in his journey. He saw a beautiful young girl glide towards an old waiting taxi cab taxi. Where are these people going to? He asked himself. Why am I going this way and not the other way? He wasn't lost. His mind is simply elsewhere. As he went further in the darkest corner of the street he saw tiny lights among the bushes. What are those light? He inspected them closely and found they were swarm of fireflies. It was so many Rollo Vitug simply lost count of them.Then he heard a tiny voice laughed behind him. He must be out of his wits. He was too tired to dream all these aberration in his senses. He saw a tiny shadow moved in front of him and called it to come out. "Come out. Who are you? C'mon. Don't be shy." Then a child came out from inside one of the trimmed bush. The child smiled the sweetest smile that melted Rollo Vitug's heart. Aaah it was like seeing the santo niño in real life. The little child unfolded his hand as the lights from the tiny fireflies shone brightly in his tiny palm. Rollo Vitug felt euphoric as the swarm of fireflies engulfed them. It was the sign he always waited. It was a miracle he simply cannot ignore.
Rollo Vitug arrived in his home in Rizal at around eleven in the evening. He asked his wife to close his eyes for a minute and when she opened them she found a beautiful child making cute funny faces on her. His wife Elena sat motionless as Rollo Vitug and his little friend took their dinner. The kid was no more than 4 year old. He was so cuddly with his fat cheek and curly hair.
"That poor child...he must have missed his parents, don't you think?" Elena said. But the child seemed at home with his new found abode. He ran around and at the middle of the night Rollo Vitug played horse with a child for the first time ever in his life.
And that was enough to answer his wife's apprehension. Rollo Vitug buzzed in her wife's ear.
"Look how happy this child is. Look at how happy we are. Look at the possibilities...maybe we can look at this at a different angle....like a chance...a gift from God. The answer to our endless mourning and prayer."
"You know how I so want this gift to be true." Elena said to her husband.
"We need to do some thing to make this legal. This kid is ours Elena. I will make it a dream come true for us."
The next day Rollo Vitug did the next thing a policeman do- file a report in his precinct. While writing his report he could not find a suitable name for the little kid. He saw the image of a new movie out in the local movie house and it starred Fernando Poe so he christened the boy Fernando to tied up some loose end in his report. He knows how to make this report impossible to follow up and to make people around him less suspicious of his intent. Then he paid some crude people to make the child's birth certificate. After he did the unthinkable he told another couple whose indebtedness to him is immeasurable to act as their missing parents to collect the boy in the local social welfare office. No sooner than three days that Rollo Vitug was able to adopt a young boy that was later named Fernando Jose Ramirez Vitug from his dummy made up couple.
The next few days Rollo Vitug took some time off from his work and brought his family to Manila Zoo. They took their first family photo in front of a giraffe. The boy was too eager to know the names of the animals that he saw, the many places they had been and the rides they took in the park. The boy ran around a rising fountain and inside the forest park gathered the flowers of ilang ilang that fall on his palm. As the boy fell asleep on his lap, Rollo Vitug swore to his death that no one can claim the boy from him. The boy is his.
After his long vacation Rollo Vitug immediately went back to his post. He mended the usual traffic in Edsa and helped track a group of Chinese drug dealers in the outskirts of Tondo. When he is in his usual post he got his mind set to go home early. Dreams consumed the rest of his days and the many places he just wanted to visit. Every night he looked after his child like a wise father does. He thought the child the sign of angelus at six of clock. He brought him early at school and ensure he got proper lunches. He religiously attended Parents Teachers Association meeting. He thought his child how to read and write. Then they carefully read the words in his tiny coloring book. As night wore on he would whisper to his ear the words from his heart. In the middle of the night Police Officer Vitug would slowly strum his guitar as he sang songs of lullaby that his grandfather sang to him in his youth.
Five years later the young Fernando would grow up a young handsome man. Fernando was Rollos daily source of inspiration and strength. Rollo Vitug was awarded Outstanding Policeman of the Year for five consecutive years. His accomplishment was notable and endless in the history of the so called 'Manila's Finest'. No policeman can match his records of apprehension and solved cases which others try to emulate but failed early on in their careers. He took pride in coming out 'clean' and 'respectable' having refused all the riches that Manila's drug lords and Chinese syndicate offered him during the many years he served as a policeman. Everyday he walked back home with clear open mind and renewed spirit. He traced back his every steps, count the light poles as he took the route around the bend and measure the time that passed as the old train coaches maneuvered the damp, greasy stretch of the slum area under the bridge. He dreamed of his place as wasn't far and that the distance he imagined we mere arms length so he could easily embraced his family much closer to his heart. But the long years took its toll as he felt them in his chest and knees. His breath became labored. Sweats ran down too easily as his forehead showed the lines of worry with the years that passed by.
The world around him, too, changed. As more poor people inhabited the sidewalks and esteros. They sprouted like barnacles under the bridge, beside the river, in unclaimed private spaces and every single imaginable open space that could house homeless migrants from the poor and farthest of provinces. As Rollo Vitug walked home these people looked at him with disdain eyes and adamant behavior. The deep seated anger they had were unlit fire that is so easy to ignite from the slightest of provocation. In the small stretch of alley housed a population of beggars, prostitutes, laborers, hustlers, drug addicts and pushers who turned the street into a puddle of putrid piss and the esteros nearby as one big garbage bin.
One night, he went home early and saw his wife Elena sitting still in the front door. "C'mon lets talk this one out." Rollo buzzed in his wife's ear. She was teary eyed. He knew something was wrong. He expected things would sway in the other direction. In life, s☆it happens all the time. It weakened the mind, body and spirit. Nightmares that somehow turned into a bitter enemy. And sometimes, we find ourserlves easily subdued. "When did this happened?"
"Just this morning in the market."
"We need to move on."
"I think it's a bad idea. I told everything."
"Why?"
Fernando asked. "How can I lie?"
That night he watched his thirteen year old boy sleep in his bed. He caressed his hair and examined the contour of his cheek. Then he planted a kiss on his forehead. The young boy woke up from his sleep and saw his father. Fernando sat beside him. "You knew?" Rollo asked. Fernando just nod his head. Fernando put his arms around his father. "Do you remember those days when we went to the sea?" Fernando listened as they journey inside Rollos thoughts. Fernando was ten years old when the sea became their summer companion. They combed the shore for seashells and driftwood. They knew too well the words to their bewilderment and the surprise of the sea creatures that lived among us. The shifting of the sand, the humming wind, the distant echo of summer wind as they both shouted out loud their name. The summer of their lives spent with the grand vista of the open sea and Rollo Vitug could still see and feel every single image inside his head, with his little boy jumping from the sheer excitement of the sea kissing his tiny little feet. Somehow it's time to wake up.
Early morning Rollo Vitug heard a loud bang on his door. Rollo went out of bed to answer the door. He knew the day had come. He opened the door and mass of humanity emerged in his front door. People of all ages men, women, children. With two policeman in tow. An old woman shouted at the top of her voice as she held in her hand a pocket knife. "Where's my son!? You stole my son! Where is he! I'm here to get my son back!" One of the policeman handed Rollo Vitug a court order to release his son back to the proper owner. He need not ask who spilled his deep dark secret as the parents whom he asked to present themselves as the claimant was beside the old woman. " I'm sorry sir," said the couple. "She was our neighbor and my wife just can't keep her mouth shut." Fernando emerged from behind the curtain with his bag already packed. Rollo Vitug hugged his son for one last time.When everyone was gone. His wife turned to him in anger and said , "You could have done something."
For three years, three months and thirteen days Rollo Vitug mourned the loss of his son. He filed a petition but it was dumped by the lower court for lack of substance on his allegation. He tried to talked it over with the rightful family but the slum dwellers barricaded the opening which made his entrance to the place impossible. The slum had their own slum police to check for drug raid and unknown intruders. Then he heard a tip that his son was moved elsewhere making contact with him impossible. It began to take its toll on Elenas health who refused to get out of the house or spoke to him after the incident.
During the next three years La Niña visited the country and punished the city with torrential rains. Black out became frequent after 300 kilometer wind destroyed power lines connecting the city with the rest of the island. The economy suffered as millions of lives were left in a state of unimaginable chaos. People accused the government of politicking and less of helping them provide their basic necessities. Police Officer Rollo Vitug saw three revolutions in his lifetime. He went again and again to the polling booth to choose more and more ineffective successor. None ever changed. Five years have gone by and he still remember his son. Every single minute of every passing day.
It was the midst of typhoon Ruping when the abominable happened. For three days and three nights the city was pummeled with torrential rain. It flooded the city and to swim across is the only way to get to another street. Rollo Vitug was on duty that fateful night and he was called to check reports of burglary in a plush subdivision in Makati. That rainy night as he patrolled the streets he spotted three shadowy figure that sneaked out of a large empty house. It was supposedly the least of his worry. The subdivision was guarded and the only way in is also the only way out. But as he patrolled the area he saw that part of the wall near the creek were partly destroyed presumably due to the softened soil where part of the wall once stood. He saw the three figure ran towards the wall. Rollo Vitug was quick on his heels and fired a shot in the air as a warning. When the group of looters saw him they left on the street the TV set and hordes of jewelries. The three looters ran in three directions but the nearest the policeman could ran after was the young shadowy figure in jeans and white shirt. Rollo ran the dash of his life. He was about to retire in the next few years and his dream was to have a nice vacation somewhere down south with his wife Elena. He wanted so much to see the immense beauty of Tinago Falls and swim under its cool crystal clear water. For the longest time he just wanted to forget Manila's street. Escape the dark comfort of its grimy surroundings and sleep comfortably under the cool breeze of Banyan Tree. Police Officer Rollo Vitug heared his labored breath as he ran and ran to catch the thief.He could feel the heavy warm air as it escaped from his mouth. Rollo stretched out his hand to within few inches of his captive. He shouted at the top of his lungs just so to make the thief stop but the young man was determined to elude him as he climbed over the fence which Rollo also did with quick ease. Then he jumped on the mounds of garbage so filthy that Rollo vomited twice from the severe assault on his olfactory senses. The mound of garbage dotted the vacant lot that was once part of an open sea and were reclaimed so the filthy rich can erect their humongous malls and parking spaces. That night it became a cat and mouse arena. But Rollo Vitug had a clear view of its landscape. "Stop or I will shoot!" Rollo shouted at the top of his voice. It was simply futile to ran away. The wind howl from the severe gust . Rollo aimed his gun and pulled his trigger. The seconds were slow and the moment seemed suspended. He heard the silence of the night broken by the eerie boom of the exploded gun shell as the silvery haze of burnt gun powder billowed up in the air. He could see the bullet cut its way through the drop of rain. Then he heard a loud thud as the young man hit the ground.
Police Officer Rollo Vitug raced towards the young man's body and quickly inspected him for any concealed weapon. The young man breathe heavily as he slowly crawled his way up to the mound of garbage. The so called 'creme de la creme' of this filthy city. He heard the young man cried out his last breath. "Help me!....Help me!" the young man said. But it was far from Rollo Vitug's mind. " I didn't know...I didn't know! My friend said it was his house. I didn't know.... it wasn't his!" The young man blurted. "....It was a mistake! Forgive me! I didn't know. He asked me to bring his belonging and I am so stupid." Blood oozed from his mouth and nostril. Rollo Vitug saw a swarm of fireflies on the young mans chest. They gathered around his arms and illuminated his face. The Policeman suddenly remembered that day when he first saw his young Fernando ran around the Banyan Tree. Quickly, he took his handkerchief in his pocket and wiped the blood on the young mans face. "Help me please." He cried. Then tears ran down the young man's face as fireflies illuminated the policeman's breast pocket. He seemed to recognise his nameplate."Vitug? Rollo Vitug? Fa..ther?"he uttered. Panicked hit Rollo when he heard his name. A cold shiver ran down his spine. "Fernando?....Is that you?" He hope it was just a mistake. If it's a dream he doesn't want to be awake. "Oh my God! Oh my God! What have I done?" He suddenly remember his son and the pain he felt inside were just too overwhelming. He could clearly see his face and recognise the warmth smell of his breath. "Wake up! Wake up! Fernando!" But the young man barely breathe on his own. The policeman let out a deep howl and cried uncontrollably. He carried the young man closed to his heart and whispered the lords name as many times as he could. He pleaded not to leave him and couple of times even slapped him on his cheek. The policeman shouted for help but no one can hear nobody in the middle of a typhoon. He carried the young man's lifeless body in his arms as blood oozed from his mouth. Rollo Vitug ran to seek help but he only slipped from the mountain of garbage that hindered every way he went. He swam across the flooded street carrying his dead body as the policeman writhe in agony the untimely demise of the young man. A fellow officer that responded to his earlier call saw Rollo Vitug in a complete state of shock as he mourn beside the body of the young man. "What's happening Rollo?" His compatriot asked. Rollo was badly shaking. Then he replied, "Jesus, I just killed a family!" His comrade replied,"Are you sure?" Rollo let out a loud howl and cried like the world suddenly ended that night. "He is my son! I just killed....my only son.I missed him so much and look what I did? "
The President awarded Police Officer Rollo Vitug numerous medal for his gallantry. In his thirty five years of service he realized no amount of award can appease a broken heart so he threw the medal they had given him. He simply said he had no use for it. No one to brag those achievement. Two other President gave him honorary medal for his fight against drugs. But the people he put behind bars had an easy escape soon after bribing top military officials. In his lifetime he apprehended six hundred thirty three pickpockets, forty rapist, couple of mall bombers, rescue countless commercial sex workers and incarcerated hundreds of drug dealers. He devoted the last few years of his police life untangling the traffic of Edsa and Kamuning. After his retirement he spent the rest of his days alone and not the dream vacation down south. He was often seen lost in a state of despair and deep reflection. He dreamed constantly. That this huge city was just a vast open playground and he saw himself running like an innocent child.
Five years later a fragrant tree sprouted from underneath the ground where he hid his blood stained uniform. Every single day he would sit under its shade and watched its flowers fell on his palm. Once a group of children woke him up from his sleep as they put around his neck a necklace made of fresh ilang ilang flowers. They giggled as they ran around with laughter that was music to his ears. He would often cry in the quiet night thinking about his son Fernando as he savored the last drop of wine from his bottle.