PNP: No credible, serious threat so far that may disrupt New Year celebration
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) has not monitored any “credible” or “serious” threat that may disrupt the country’s celebrations of the New Year, an official said Monday.
Nonetheless, the country’s police force is ready to make necessary adjustments if the need for police deployment and intervention arises, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo also said.
“So far, we have not monitored any credible and serious threat that may somehow disrupt our peaceful holding of our New Year celebration come December 31 up to January 1,” she said in an interview on ABS CBN News Channel.
“But we expect that we will be making the same necessary adjustment if the need arises,” she added.
Article continues after this advertisementFajardo said police field commanders are given “wide latitude” in making necessary adjustments in deployment if they monitor an influx of people in areas of public convergence.
Article continues after this advertisementThe PNP also urged residents to lock up their homes before leaving for extended holidays throughout the New Year period.
“Make sure to lock your respective houses, doors, and even windows and if there is someone who can watch over your house, it will be better so that it can be monitored from time to time,” the PNP spokesperson said.
She also recommended people to avoid live-post their whereabouts on social media to avoid alerting potential crooks to the fact that they are out of the house.
“Instead of posting it in real time, if you cannot prevent posting your activities, maybe you can post that later than during the actual time that you are out of your houses,” Fajardo said.
Fajardo also cautioned individuals who intend to travel by personal vehicle to check the vehicle’s condition and avoid driving under the influence of alcohol.
The PNP earlier said it did not record any significant untoward incident during the nine-day “Simbang Gabi” and Christmas weekend.
READ: PNP: No significant incident recorded during Christmas Day celebrations