Cops arrest 302 ‘tambays’ in one night in Quezon City

Chief Supt. Joselito Esquivel, QCPD director (Photo by EDWIN BACASMAS / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

In response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s warning to ‘tambays’ – people who loiter on the streets, especially at night – the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) has arrested 302 violators of various city ordinances.

“Tambay” comes from the English word “stand by.”

“We intensified the implementation of city ordinances according to the instruction of our President to make our streets safe and peaceful,” Chief Supt. Joselito Esquivel, chief of the QCPD, said in a report in Filipino on Saturday.

According to Esquivel’s report to National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Chief Supt. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar, nine were taken to the La Loma Police Station for drinking liquor in public places, while 10 who roamed around while naked and six who smoked in public were jailed in Masambong Police Station.

In Barangay Talipapa, 114 individuals, 13 of them minors, violated the discipline hours, while others were caught drinking in public places and were half-naked. Ten of them were also arrested for possession of illegal drugs and paraphernalia.

In Fairview, eight were caught drinking and smoking while half-naked in a public place, while two in Batasan were walking half-naked. Two were caught carrying bladed weapons and six for barking for jeepneys in Novaliches.

The same report said that police officers in Cubao apprehended four people for drinking in public places, while one was caught carrying a bladed weapon.

In Project 4, 14 were caught smoking in public and walking half-naked.

Ten in Anonas, 20 in Galas, and were 11 in Eastwood were apprehended for either drinking in or walking half-naked in public places.

Meanwhile, 79 in Kamuning were arrested for drinking in and walking half-naked public and three for barking for jeepney drivers.

On inspection, three of the 79 were found in possession of suspected crystal meth, or shabu.

Esquivel reminded residents of the city to follow city ordinances to avoid any untoward incidents in the future. /atm