DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / August 29) — The Davao City Police Office (DCPO) will deploy drones to enhance its peace and security measures for the city.

In a Facebook post Thursday, DCPO wrote that the move, dubbed “eye in the sky,” “[ushers] in a new era of innovation-driven policing in Davao City” and is a response to calls for modernization to ensure faster action.

The post added that the measure will ensure wider coverage, faster response, and real-time monitoring to fight criminality.

In its video explainer, the aerial patrol surveillance will assist ground operations of station commands and unit commanders with real-time intelligence.

The coordination of DCPO’s integrated command center will ensure effective drone deployment for maximum coverage and response.

DCPO sampled a zoomed-in subject in motion riding a motorcycle, citing an assumed hit and run scenario.

The scenario, however, only assumed a daytime incident.

According to the video, the drone operator will monitor suspects and enlist their details, motor vehicle description, heading and directions.

The information will be transmitted to the nearest stations or units.

DCPO said this measure will intercept criminals within “minutes swift.”

The “eye in the sky” patrol will also monitor suspicious persons. It did not say how many drones will be deployed.

Data from DCPO obtained by MindaNews said the city’s crime rate has decreased by 4.18% from January to July 2025 compared to the same period last year.

The move was a response to the call of modernization to ensure responses are faster, DCPO’s video said. (Razl TJ Eman/MindaNews)