FILE PHOTO: Philippine National Police
MANILA, Philippines —The Philippine National Police is shifting to a more preventive approach against crime with the approval of the the 2023 National Crime Prevention Program (NCPP) last May 2, PNP chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. said on Monday.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 19, which mandated all government agencies and local government units to support the NCPP and address criminality and ensure nationwide safety and security by “adopting a whole-of-government approach.”
According to the Presidential Communications Office, the 2023 NCPP was developed by the National Police Commission’s Technical Committee on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, an interdisciplinary body composed of experts from various government agencies and non-government organizations connected to the criminal justice system.
Acorda said the national police force is focusing on more preventive aspects of crime control “by taking away instruments of crime and violence,” getting rid of “criminal elements which set into motion the criminal motive,” and strengthening “soft targets” and institutionalize strong police presence in order “to deny further opportunities for crime to be committed.”
“These preventive actions against crime are more prominent in police operations against loose firearms and arrest of wanted persons,” Acorda said during Monday’s flag ceremony at the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City.
He noted that by applying these preventive measures, the PNP had recovered 10,971 firearms and arrested 3,425 people since January.
Acorda added that 187 criminal gangs were nuetralized with the arrest of 854, the surrender of 86 gang members, and the confiscation of 126 firearms.
The police force also arrested 27,948 wanted individuals and “accepted the surrender of 153 other wanted persons” during the same period, Acorda said.
Last May 15, Acorda also reported that the PNP’s “intensified police visibility, strengthened partnerships with other agencies, and improved crime reporting and monitoring systems” has decreased index crimes in the country.
From 15,064 cases in January to May 2022, index crimes dropped by 10.59 percent to 13,469 cases in the same period this year.