Riau Police Chief Urges Officers to Mind Their Conduct: Public Trust is Our Weapon

The Chief of Police for Riau, Inspector General of Police Herry Heryawan, issued a firm instruction to all his officers to be more mindful and maintain proper conduct within the community. He emphasised that the primary weapon of the Polri (Indonesian National Police) is not physical strength, but rather public trust and sympathy, which must be maintained through professionalism.

“I must reiterate that our primary weapon at this time is public trust and sympathy,” said Inspector General Herry Heryawan at the Riau Police Headquarters in Pekanbaru, on Wednesday (25 February 2026).

The Chief of Police stated that to gain this public trust and sympathy, personnel are expected to embody good values.

“Let these good deeds become a habit that shapes character,” he said.

He stressed to his officers to work sincerely and wholeheartedly to earn public trust. He reminded them that the good things that have existed so far should not be tarnished by the actions of a few individuals.

“Let us not allow the hard work and good values we have cultivated to achieve public trust to be tarnished by the actions of one or two of our personnel,” he said.

The two-star general also asked the heads of units to continue to provide guidance and treat members not only as subordinates but as colleagues, reminding each other.

“We are all part of one big family. If one member experiences a disaster, we must empathise. But if one member commits a violation, we are obliged to remind them,” he said.

The Chief of Police also asked all personnel to embrace the tagline ‘Protecting the Essence, Maintaining Dignity’ to preserve the image and identity of both individuals and the institution.

He also emphasised the measured and humane use of force. In this digital age, all personnel of the Riau Police are expected to be aware of cameras.

“Nowadays, we live in the age of social media, the age of post-truth. If something untrue is repeated over and over, eventually the public will believe that what we do incorrectly is actually correct. Always be aware of cameras and strive to do good,” he explained.

In his address, the Chief of Police also emphasised the issue of drugs. He warned all his officers to stay away from drugs.

“I ask that no one ever use drugs again. There will be no more undercover operations to approach potential suspects while both are using drugs; that will not happen,” he said.

(mea/dhn)