THE Davao Police Regional Office (PRO 11) backed the proposal of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio to exempt Davao City from the Mindanao-wide implementation of martial law after noting a stable peace and order situation over the past years.
“We fully support the good mayor's inclination to lift Martial Law in Davao City. We strongly believe and trust her profundity and discernment on the prevailing peace and order situation of the city... We will also submit assessment and evaluation needed to support the local executives' proposal on martial law exemption,” PRO 11 said in a statement.
Duterte-Carpio, during her keynote speech at the 5th Davao Investment Conference (Icon) last June 20, expressed her desire to on the lifting of martial law in Davao City after her discussion with ambassadors on the situation of martial law in Mindanao. The recommendation was made ahead of its expiration at the end of the year to attract more investments and tourists to come to the city.
The PRO 11 statement added that for two years of martial law implementation, both the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) together with other law enforcement units were able to maintain peace and order in the city, even cited the arrest of Maute Group patriarch in 2017 as one of its positive results.
Aside from that was the arrest of high-ranking members of the communist groups, high-valued drug targets, and apprehension of most wanted personalities.
“With or without martial law, the Police Regional Office 11 shall continue to perform its task of protecting the right to life, liberty, and property of the people while making sure that legitimate dissent, done within the bounds of the law, is respected,” it added.
Amid the prevailing threats in the President’s hometown, PRO 11 has stepped up several security programs to address security threats through the introduction of Smart Policing like Geographic Information System (GIS), Facial Recognition System (FRS) and Plate Number Identification System (PNIS).
These are all housed in the PRO 11 Regional Tactical Operations Center (RTOC), the emergency communications and operations center of PRO 11 which serves as the main coordinating center for all operating units in pursuance to law enforcement, internal security, special operations, and crime records/ statistics compilation functions.
Aside from investing in technology, the personnel were already knowledgeable and skill-trained especially in the fields of Investigation, Intelligence, and Community Relation to proactively respond to all security concerns in their area of assignment.
“Whatever be the decision of the peace and order council on the proposal of martial law exemption, we still urge all Davaoeños to be vigilant and continue to extend their assistance to the law enforcers through relaying vital information in consideration of their patriotic duty to protect themselves and their families because we believe that the civilian population is an important part of the government’s fight against terrorism,” PRO 11 said.