GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/03 Sept.) — The Police Regional Office (PRO)-12 has placed all its units under full alert following the bomb attack in Davao City late Friday night that left 14 people dead and 71 others wounded.
Supt. Romeo Galgo Jr., public information officer of PRO-12, said all police personnel in the area are currently on full deployment in various strategic points in a bid to avert similar attacks.
Citing a directive from PRO-12 regional director, Chief Supt. Cedrick Train, he said their personnel have sealed off the borders of key cities and municipalities and established additional checkpoints along major highways.
The official specifically cited this city, which is currently celebrating its 48th charter anniversary and 18th Tuna Festival.
“Our intensified security operations are ongoing and we have set additional measures to properly secure the festival venues and activities,” he told MindaNews on the phone.
The city police had assigned around 500 policemen to secure the ongoing festivities, which is centered at the city’s oval plaza grounds.
The festival formally opened last Thursday and will end on Monday, Sept. 5, the city’s 48th charter anniversary.
Aside from city police personnel, volunteers from barangay peacekeeping teams and personnel from the city government’s civil security units were also deployed at the festival venues.
The PRO-12 has provided augmentation personnel from the Regional Public Safety Battalion-12 and its other support units.
Galgo said the city police is strictly observing the ban on carrying of backpacks at the festival venues.
At the city’s entry and exit points, he said joint police and Army personnel under the Joint Task Force GenSan have been conducting thorough inspections on all passing vehicles.
For passenger buses and other public utility vehicles, he said passengers are required to disembark to ensure proper inspections.
In line with the nationwide “state of lawlessness” declared by President Rodrigo R. Duterte, Galgo said they have stepped up their security and intelligence operations against local terror groups.
He said they have linked up with their military counterparts for the monitoring of possible movements of members of terror groups in the area.
“We would like to assure the public that we’re on top of the situation and exerting all the necessary efforts to ensure that the entire region will be safe and secure at all times,” he added. (MindaNews)
