CEBU, Philippines — The new Carbon Police Station (Station 5) commander has proposed a centralized radio system in Cebu City’s downtown area to help authorities monitor and apprehend criminals.
Police Major Erwin Abrasado, in an interview with The Freeman yesterday, said he is making the proposal not because of increasing crime rate but because of his desire to have faster response to any incident.
He was transferred from Mandaue City just a few weeks ago.
“Controlled ra man ang (crime) diri, but ang ako lang gyud purpose ani is mapadali ang communication and response ba if naay mga panghitabo or about to happen…. Parehas kanina gud, dili ta maka contact (due to bad cellular phone signal reception),” he said.
“So, para mas mapabilis pa talaga ang pag-respond...ibig sabihin, if nakapag-response na within three minutes before, basin mas makaresponde diay ta within a minute na lang,” he added.
Abrasado said the use of handheld transceivers (HT) or handheld radio, or what the general public commonly refer to as “walkie-talkie” is the most effective for this purpose.
He said even with smart cellular phones, poor signal quality hampers their effectiveness, not to mention the need of mobile data or load.
Abrasado with a cellphone, only one receiver can take note of a reported incident, compared to the use of a handheld radio where those attuned to the same frequency can simultaneous receive the information.
“(With a cellphone), kung motawag ang (concerned individual), usa lang ang makadungog, which is ang katong gitawagan lang. Whereas kon radio, daghan ang maka-monitor,” he said.
“For example, dili man nato malikayan gyud ang panghitabo bisan unsaon nato paghugot (sa security), naa man gyuy makalusot panagsa…. Kung nay panghitabo, makatawag dayon, ma-monitor ka dayon sa pinakalapit nga lugar,” he further said.
He emphasized that if the alarm is raised at the shortest possible time, they can also pursue a suspect right away.
“Masundan dayon nato ang suspek,” he said.
He proposed that each barangay and business establishment should have at least two hand-held radios. For the barangays, one should be held by the barangay captain and the other by a tanod.
“Pero sabotan pa namo na, kay gi-propose pa man na nako sa advisory group,” Abrasado said while admitting that funds are need to purchase the equipment.
He proposed to pilot his plan with three barangays within Carbon Police Station’s jurisdiction, namely Ermita, Pahina Central, and Kalubihan.
Abrasado assured that only authorized individuals and personnel gets access to the particular, designated channel.
“Dili ta basta-basta muhatag og radio (access) sa uban,” he said.
A few months before Abrasado’s transfer to Cebu City, two major robberies occured at the downtown area, when armed men robbed jewelry stores.
Speaking during a program of the Cebu City Public Information Office’s Sugboanon Channel, he said he already met with owners of local businesses and barangay leaders and they assured him of their support for the idea.
“Very supportive kaayo sila, especially ning atong mga business establishments. Gihisgutan gyud namo kung unsaon namo pag-maintain sa peace and order sa ilang lugar,” Abrasado said.
He said he plans to coordinate with the security personnel (especially those guarding jewelry stores) of business establishment on how they can improve their capability.
He likewise encouraged businesses to invest in security equipment, such as closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras and alarm systems, especially for the Christmasn season.
Cebu City Police Office Director Antonietto Cañete had already sent additional personnel to Station 5 to help in the police visibility during the holiday season.
Aside from that, Abrasado said, he and his men are also working non-stop in their campaign against illegal drugs and gambling.
His station has already conducted 22 anti-illegal drug operations, which resulted in the arrest of 31 suspects and confiscation of P1.8 million worth of illegal drugs.
His mean also conducted 41 anti-illegal gambling operations, which resulted in the arrest of 49 suspects and seizure of P10, 025 worth of gambling proceeds.
Station 5 also conducted 125 “Oplan Katok” operations so far, with policemen knocking on doors to remind firearm holders to renew their gun licenses and turn over unregistered firearms for police safekeeping and custody.
Station 5 has also renewed its operations against wanted persons, arresting four suspects wanted in the provincial level and another within the municipal level. — /RHM (FREEMAN)