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Thursday, February 09, 2006
Mayor thumbs down plan for police precinct
Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña wants only one command center and one lead agency to monitor peace and order during the Asean summit in December.
It would not be ideal to put up a Community Police Action Center (Compac) or a small police precinct in Barangay Lahug in time for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit, Osmeña said yesterday.
Members of the Cebu City Police Coordinating and Advisory Council (PCAC), in a meeting, had proposed to construct a small police precinct in the vicinity of the city jail and Waterfront Cebu City Hotel to ensure public safety in the area, especially during the Asean summit in December.
The hotel is expected to house at least one head of state and a number of foreign dignitaries.
Avoid confusion
But for Osmeña, only one command center, one lead agency and one commander must lead the event’s security and peace and order monitoring to avoid confusion and lapses.
“The concept of putting up another police station can’t be considered as automatic because for me, when it comes to operating a situation like that, there must be only one command center, not three, not four,” Osmeña said.
Having a coordinating body where all police stations take the lead in ensuring order during the summit would make a formula for a disaster, he added.
“The summit requires a strict command and control of the situation and that’s not necessarily consistent with having a mini-precinct. The communications requirement is very heavy, how can you put all those equipment in a compact precinct? It’s not something I would consider ideal,” he said.
Osmeña told a news conference yesterday that he has yet to discuss the matter with the police department and the PCAC but he will not oppose their plan if they decide to pursue it.
At the City Council session yesterday, the councilors also approved a budget of P2 million for potted flowering plants in preparation for the summit.
The plants will be used in the 5,000-square-meter covered nursery at the South Reclamation Project (SRP), which is expected to produce 500,000 potted flowering plants in time for the event.
These will be used to adorn the SRP, the South Coastal Road and center islands in the city’s main thoroughfares. (LCR)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (February 9, 2006 issue)
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