EDITORIAL - The importance of CCTVs

Closed-circuit television cameras have long been proven to hold a vital role in police investigation to solve crimes. There are incidents in which criminals were caught by CCTV cameras while pulling off their trade.

That is why authorities have been calling for businessmen to put up CCTV cameras in their establishments. In Metro Cebu, for example, it has become a standard operating procedure for businesses to use CCTV as part of their security.

Even the Cebu City government realized the importance of the CCTV. In fact, several barangays have already installed CCTV cameras in strategic areas as part of the campaign to deter crimes. Ermita, Cogon-Ramos, Zapatera, Labangon, Mabolo, and Apas are the latest barangays that are going to install CCTV cameras to help the city boost its security.

Good thing the city has what it calls the C3 or the Command Control Center, a 24-hour sophisticated monitoring station that barangays can immediately coordinate with over incidents captured by CCTV cameras.

CCTVs' importance in maintaining peace and order should never be belittled because they could certainly help solve crimes. Countless murders and robberies have already been solved because of the help of CCTV cameras.

Authorities looking into the ambush of prominent lawyer Noel Archival and his aides have, in fact, been seeking the help of a CCTV which reportedly captured footages of the vehicles ridden by their perpetrators in Dalaguete town. They hope to identify the vehicles used in the incident to trace the owners.

In Cebu City, where all strategic locations are not all the time covered with police visibility, especially during the night, CCTVs should play an important part in monitoring peace and order.

Given their usefulness, the need to install CCTV cameras in every corner around the city has become more logical. That is because authorities will never win the war against criminality unless they learn to embrace the importance of modern technology.