THE Davao City government's security sector is preparing for the Pilot Bar Exam in the city after it was selected by the Supreme Court of the Philippines as one of the sites for the computer-based testing system.
Public Safety and Security Command Center (PSSCC) chief Colonel Angel Sumagaysay said his office has coordinated with Justice Marvic Leonen, the chairman of the 2020-2021 bar exams, to ensure security for the Pilot Bar examinations.
Sumagaysay said security arrangements were made for the "safe and successful conduct" of the Bar examinations.
“Our preparation was purely security to ensure that the mock bar examination will run smoothly. We coordinated with the representatives from the Supreme Court, particularly with the office of Justice Leonen,” Sumagaysay said.
He said his office conducted self-deployment on January 30 and implemented full deployment of 63 personnel from PSSCC, Davao City Police Office, City Traffic and Transport Management Office, and Central 911 Emergency Medical Services on January 31.
He added the Supreme Court (SC) was grateful to the City Government of Davao for the safe implementation of the mock bar examination of 27 examinees, which was successfully carried out within their target schedule.
The simulation was held simultaneously at Ateneo de Manila Professional Schools in Makati City, St. Louis University in Baguio, University of Cebu in Cebu City and Ateneo de Davao University in Davao City.
The Supreme Court en banc has announced the postponement of the 2020 Bar examinations on April 29, 2020, in light of the increasing number of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the country and the pandemic causing social and economic disruption.
Bar Bulletin no. 11 series of 2020, signed by Marvic Leonen, Associate Justice and 2020 Bar Examinations chairperson, said the postponement gave the Court enough time “to determine the necessary adjustments and to make adequate preparations for the safe and orderly conduct of the examinations.”
The SC on January 8 announced that it will conduct a pilot mock bar examination in preparation for the digitalized bar examinations scheduled in November.
In a statement, the SC said the simulation is being undertaken in coordination with the Philippine Associate of Law Schools, non-profit international development organization The Asia Foundation, and ExamSoft. The mock test will involve around 120 students in Baguio City, Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao.
"The examinations will be a small-scale simulation of the actual bar examinations using computer software, proctored both physically and virtually," the SC said, adding that "the goal of this exercise is to improve on the procedures and technical specifications" for the localized bar examinations.