TAGUM CITY, Davao del Norte — Provincial Governor Edwin I. Jubahib aligns his peace and security agenda for the rest of the year with the priorities of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr as outlined in the 4th State of the Nation Address (SONA).
During the recently held Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) meeting Jubahib said he had picked up his priorities on crime prevention and solution including the drug problem from the recently delivered SONA of the President.
“Done na ang SONA, it’s high time for the PPOC to move towards peace,” he told some 25 attending members of the PPOC.
On top of the agriculture SONA priorities, Jubahib got drawn towards the priorities of the President on peace and order, anti-drugs, heinous crimes, and on addressing graft and corruption.
At the provincial level, flooding topped his concerns aside from peace and order. He believed that addressing this perennial problem would result in eventually solving some concerns which created situations leading people to criminality.
Taking a more specific assessment of the peace and order situation, he pointed out the need to frame strategies to sustain the peace gains as a result of the whole of nation approach to end the more than 50 year insurgency armed conflict.
He pegged illegal drugs as the second topmost concern for the PPOC to address citing the observed increase in heinous crimes, some of which involved minors as reported by the Philippine National Police (PNP).
He expressed all out support for the PPOC resolution to lower the age of discernment of children found involved in crimes, and the establishment of separate facilities of children in conflict with the law (CICL) in all local government units.
The Governor also wanted to pursue the establishment of Task Force Davao del Norte to secure the entry and exit points of the province.
The members shall be provided salary by the provincial government of Davao del Norte and the group shall be managed by the Philippine Army which will provide the necessary uniforms and firearms, Jubahib said.
Jubahib cited the critical importance of Task Force Davao del Norte as an augmentation force of the PNP and the Philippine Army.
“Meron tayong additional force for visibility and rooving; higpitan nato ang mga boundaries,” he said pointing out the need to secure Davao del Norte from possible re-entry of remnant armed group of the communist terrorist group (CTG) in the borders with nearby areas.
He also eyed on gambling as one of the peace and order concerns to focus on. According to him, gambling preys on minors who usually are enticed to use their school allowance to bet, and that gambling sparks the commission of other related crimes such as theft and robbery, he said.
“In the province, we will take all measures to prevent these,” he said, referring to the top-rated crimes and disturbance to peace while giving emphasis on the need to “secure the lives and property of all in Davao del Norte”. PIA DAVAO