Combating NCR crime: Weekly ‘scorecards’ for mayors

Bea Cupin

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Combating NCR crime: Weekly ‘scorecards’ for mayors
The weekly scorecards – a breakdown of crime incidents in each LGU – will help mayors create strategies to combat crime better, says DILG chief Manuel Roxas II

MANILA, Philippines – By October, Metro Manila mayors will be given weekly data showing the number of crimes committed in their cities, down to the police station level.

On Wednesday, September 17, top officials from the National Capital Region (NCR)’s local government units and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) met with Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima, and NCR Police Office (NCRPO) chief Police Director Carmela Valmoria, to discuss this.

“The mayors will be given data from the PNP so they will know the real crime situation in their area based on the PNP’s statistics. This will be similar to a scorecard on the incidents of murder homicide, robbery, theft, carnapping, motorcycle-napping per LGU,” Roxas said in a press briefing after the meeting.

Roxas said the data would allow the mayors to better create strategies to combat specific crimes in their cities.

The meeting comes amid public concern over a perceived increase in criminality. The PNP has been in hot water recently following a series of high-profile crimes, some of which involve their own personnel. 

‘Oplan Lambat’

The weekly reports are a result of the Philippine National Police (PNP)’s “Oplan Lambat,” which aims to curb crime in the Philippine capital through better collection of data, and smarter deployment of cops.

By October, the PNP will begin geotagging crime incidents in NCR. Oplan Lambat also involves moving cops out of administrative duties and back into the streets. During the briefing, Roxas said at least 1,400 cops have been moved back to police stations, with 300 more coming in.

In earlier interviews, Roxas said they plan to implement Oplan Lambat outside Metro Manila once the NCR results show it’s effective. 

 

Dec 30 2013-Jun 15, 2014 (Weekly average)

Jun 16 – Sep 7, 2014 (Weekly average) Sep 8-14, 2014
Murder/Homicide 32 27 24
Robbery/Theft 610 666 635

So far, the PNP has observed a “downward trend” in NCR crime incidents since the launch of Oplan Lambat. Murder and homicide cases reported from September 8-14, 2014 for instance, was at 24 compared to the weekly average of 32 from December 2013 to June 15.

Robbery and theft cases went up – 635 this week compared to the 610 weekly average from December 2013 to June 2014.

LGU cooperation

More than a month after the plan was first announced, Roxas and the PNP discussed with mayors a plan to require all national chains to install closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras outside their stores. The move is seen as a means to curb crime and make investigations easier.

The DILG chief clarified that only national chains with the financial capacity to install CCTV cameras are required.

In an earlier press briefing, Roxas said an initial market scan done by the Philippine National Police (PNP) showed that a basic CCTV system costs about P20,000 to P25,000.

Doon sa mga malalaking negosyo, kaya nila ito,” he added. (The big businesses can afford this.)

Roxas said the mayors who attended the meeting all agree to the plan, and will soon issue their own city ordinances to compel local businesses to follow the DILG directive. Several existing ordinances already require businesses to install CCTVs.

But not all of Metro Manila’s LGUs were represented during the meeting. Out of 17 NCR LGUs, 5 were absent – Las Piñas, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasig and Makati.

Asked if Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay had sent a representative, Roxas said: “Inimbita natin lahat ng mayors, nasa kanila kung mag-aattend sila o hindi.” (We invited all mayors. It’s up to them if they attend or not.)

Binay is the son of Vice President Jejomar Binay, who defeated Roxas in the vice presidential race in 2010 and is likely to run against him for the presidency in 2016.

Although he has yet to announce any plans of running for office again, Roxas is the ruling Liberal Party’s perceived standard-bearer for the 2016 presidential. Binay, meanwhile, has already announced his plans to run for the presidency.

Emphasizing the importance of the cooperation between the PNP and LGUs, Roxas said they “will try and figure out” how to implement the weekly scorecards in LGUs that weren’t present during the meeting. – Rappler.com

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Bea Cupin

Bea is a senior multimedia reporter who covers national politics. She's been a journalist since 2011 and has written about Congress, the national police, and the Liberal Party for Rappler.