Mayor Binay asks PNP to augment police force in Makati

Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Makati Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay has asked the Philippine National Police (PNP) to augment its “grossly inadequate” police force in the city following the reported series of robberies specifically along Chino Roces Avenue.

Binay made the request in a letter to PNP Director General Alan Purisima.

In his letter, the mayor noted that for the past few months, his office has been receiving reports and complaints directly from residents, workers and other stakeholders in Makati about rampant criminality, particularly hold-ups and bag snatching which happen even in broad daylight.

Binay also mentioned the statement of Makati Police chief Senior Superintendent Manuel Lukban that the city’s police could not prevent petty crimes in the country’s financial center.

“Coming from the police chief himself, this statement should be taken seriously,” the mayor said in a statement on Tuesday.

“It is apparent that the current size of our police force is grossly inadequate to provide security and protection for a highly urbanized city like Makati,” he said.

Binay said the city has a nighttime population of 529,039 which balloons to over four million during daytime because of the influx of transients that include workers, traders, students, tourists and shoppers going to the Central Business District and nearby areas.

“With only 560 police personnel at present, the ratio of police to nighttime population is 1:945 (one policeman for 945 persons), while police to daytime population is 1:10,714 (one policeman for 10,714 persons),” he said.

Although the city has been trying its best to beef up force multipliers at the village level, Binay said, they recognize that police presence and visibility is still the most effective deterrent to criminal elements and activities.

“We hope to receive positive feedback from the PNP chief, as I know that we share the same goal which is to eliminate all forms of criminality not only in Makati but in the entire country as well,” he said.

Binay said the city government has allocated a budget of P107.3 million for the Makati Police Department. The amount, he said, covers monthly allowances and fringe benefits for senior police officers and rank-and-file personnel, as well as for the purchase of vehicles and equipment.

In addition to 15 new patrol cars it turned over last year to the Makati Police Department, he said, the city government as of June this year has also given two new vehicles for the use of its Special Reaction Unit, two all-terrain trucks for its disaster preparedness and rescue operations, and four new pick-up patrol vehicles.

He said the Makati C3 (central command center) at City Hall also continues to undergo modernization and expansion, with 200 new CCTV cameras set to be installed in addition to 150 CCTV cameras currently in place in major intersections and areas around the city.

RELATED STORIES

Why Chino Roces Avenue is becoming dangerous

Cops helpless as jeepney holdup cases rise along Chino Roces, Makati