After the Listin Diario newspaper published an article about young Franklin Vargas, 14, who has taken it upon himself to direct traffic on a busy corner near the Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE), the Chief of Police, Camilo Antonio Nazir Tejada, has decided to give him an official position in the National Police.
Franklin Vargas now has a daily work schedule, a fixed salary, and a uniform in which to carry out his duties. He began directing traffic at the corner of Avenida Mexico and Calle Cesar Dargam about nine months ago, after witnessing an accident there while working as a boy bootblack.
After a few months of working during daylight hours, before the normal traffic policeman took over, Franklin gained the confidence and cooperation of most drivers in the area, preventing jams and permitting the traffic to run smoothly.
The Chief of Police saw the article, called the boy into his office and offered him an official job as the day traffic policeman on the corner. There is one condition, however, to Franklin’s new job: he has promised that he will attend night classes in order to graduate from the eighth grade, the minimum educational requirement to be a member of the National Police. Franklin Vargas also appeared on the front page of last week’s “News”.