DESPITE the murder of former prosecutor Mary Ann Castro the other night along Escario St. in Cebu City, an incident that happened only a few days after the Commission on Elections imposed a gun ban (Jan,13 to June 12), we are confident that security forces would still be able to maintain the peace and ensure order in Metro Cebu and the province going into the feast of the Sto. Niño and the May polls.
The gun ban was meant to ensure that criminal elements would be deterred from doing their thing during the political exercise. In Cebu City, the need to impose it has become even more urgent considering the fiesta and the Sinulog festivities. Still, Castro’s killer successfully staged a hit.
The Philippine National Police, through the Police Regional Office 7 and the Cebu City Police Office, have already laid down a security plan for these major events. That Castro was murdered during this period can be considered but a blip in the radar although critics can consider it a worrisome development and a bad sign.
It would be good to remind the public, though, that maintaining the peace and keeping order is not the sole responsibility of the local government units and the security forces. That task is a shared endeavor, with the public’s participation an important aspect of it.
For the fiesta, there are a number of ways that the people can contribute to the maintenance of peace and order, including following the security plan that the local government unit and the police have laid down. Unruly persons, mostly those that defy the ban on the selling and drinking of liquor, have always been the bane at the Sinulog grand parade route and of many fiesta activities.
We should also help in monitoring the activities of people who might be planning to sow chaos or mayhem for whatever motivation they can concoct. There are law enforcers everywhere and timely reporting is necessary. Let us consider the maintenance of peace and order our shared responsibility and not just the task of the officials of local government units and security forces.