Taguig schools to install CCTVs following shooting incident

MANILA, Philippines—Education officials in Taguig are fast-tracking the installation of security cameras in the city’s public schools and taking other security measures in the wake of Thursday’s shooting at the Ricardo Papa High School in Barangay Tuktukan when a student accidentally shot his cousin in the jaw with a homemade gun.

Department of Education Taguig-Pateros administrator George Tizon told the Inquirer that P10 million has already been allocated for the installation of closed-circuit television cameras in the city’s 34 schools. The budget was prepared last year to address bullying incidents.

“We are already identifying strategic locations in schools where the cameras will be installed,” Tizon said. The cameras will be installed in 22 elementary schools, 12 high schools, covering a total of 125,000 students, he added. He expressed the hope  the CCTVs could be installed in time for the next school year.

Tizon added that DepEd Taguig-Pateros will also be conducting stricter security training for school guards during the summer, and will be stepping up their values education for students.

The Ricardo Papa High School was rattled on Thursday morning when a 14-year-old second year high school student accidentally fired the homemade handgun he was showing off to his 13-year-old freshman cousin during recess.

The girl was hit on the jaw and was rushed to the Taguig-Pateros District Hospital. By Friday, she was  reported in stable condition. No police complaint has been filed, though the incident was recorded in the city police blotter.

An investigation by school officials revealed the boy had brought the gun to school as self-defense against an enemy he had outside of the campus, Tizon said. “He seems to have gotten it from an older relative. He had no intention of using it inside the school. It just so happened he had an enemy outside,” Tizon said.

Tizon said, however, that the DepEd will be conducting its own investigation to determine if there was negligence on the part of the school security and personnel, since the boy was able to enter school grounds and his classroom with a gun.

Tizon said they were  also studying sanctions against the boy, though “there is still no decision regarding his status.”

“This [the shooting] was an isolated incident, but we are looking at it as a motivation to improve security in our schools, and to prevent this from happening again,” Tizon said.