Thursday, October 19, 2006 Silay airport security still inadequate: By Erwin Ambo S. Delilan and Nicolas C. Delfin
ALTHOUGH the Scout Rangers Regiment is already guarding the entire vicinity of the New Bacolod (Silay) Airport in Silay City, the security operations in the area remains inadequate.
Police Regional Office 6 Director Geary Barias also said during a joint meeting of the Regional and City Peace and Order Councils Wednesday at the Casino Filipino Hotel in Bacolod that peacekeeping units have yet to decide which one will take the lead in securing the Silay airport.
"We don't know yet who among the PNP, the Army, the Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC), or the foreign contractors will lead the security operations," he said.
He also said the groups are still in the stage of ironing the security measures that will prevent another communist rebel attack.
ID system in Boracay
Meanwhile, Barias also recommended a database identification system to be initiated in the island paradise of Boracay for security purposes.
Barias said that through an ID system, terrorist attacks could be prevented and it would be easy for them to counter insurgency that might happen in the place.
"The ID system will not necessarily be issued to everybody but only to the employees of the resorts so we would have a database of these workers," he said.
Aside from the ID system, Barias said, "exit and entry points to the island should also be regulated and that local residents of the island should be registered."
"Having a database compilation of the people in Boracay would make it easy for us to track down suspected terrorists and criminals," he said.
Last October 12, 2002, 202 people died, 169 of whom were foreign nationals, in a popular resort in Bali, Indonesia. The attack, also injuring 209 people, is considered Indonesia's deadliest terrorist attack.
Eleven days before its third anniversary in 2005, several beach resorts in Bali were attacked again by three suicide bombers linked to the Jemaah Islamiyah. The attack killed 23 persons including the three bombers and injured 129, mostly Indonesians, Australians, and other foreign tourists.
Meanwhile, Barias said, "If our plans will be carried out, we will be putting high technology equipment such as televisions and video surveillance apparatus and invest more on communication to counter terrorist attacks," he said.
"We should invest on security and if proper action should be taken, then this is the right time," he said.
"If terrorists would attack and kill as many foreign nationals as they want to, the most likely place to attack is Boracay. But we will never let that happen," he added.
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