TO ensure the public safety of Dabawenyos, a Davao City councilor proposed a city ordinance to require some business establishments in the city to install modern closed-circuit television (CCTV).
Davao City Councilor Luna Acosta said although the city already enacted a CCTV ordinance in 2012 and was amended in 2014, it's about time to upgrade the CCTV system to be aligned with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) memorandum circular this 2022.
"Naga-mandate sila og additional requirements for the CCTVs that we have used. Since 2014 pa man ang last amended ordinance; unya ang specs atong CCTV dili pa high-tech as what we are using now (They (DILG) mandated additional requirements for the CCTV that we are using. The last time the ordinance was amended was in 2014 and the specs of the CCTV at that time are not using the latest technology)," Acosta said in an interview on November 15, 2022 at the Sanguniang Panglugnsod.
She said CCTV technology and specifications should be upgraded, particularly the frame rate and bandwidth of the equipment.
"Biskan mga cellphone gani karun taas na kaayo og frames per second ug memory. So, ang gusto nato mahitabo karun ma-increase nato ng frames per second ug ang bandwidth sa mga CCTVs nga required sa atoang mga establishments (Even cellphones have higher frames per second and memory. What we want to happen is for establishments to have CCTVs with better frames per second and bandwidth)," Acosta said.
Acosta said business establishments should have modern CCTV as it adds security to their establishments.
"Importate man gud ning mga CCTV kay naga-add ni sila og mga security features, para kabalo ta kung asa nga areas ang naay posible nga crime nga mahitabo, kinsa ang mga na-cover ani nga mga crime, ug unsa ang mga evidence ang pwede nato gamiton sa mga nagbuhat aning mga crimes (These CCTV are important because it adds security to the establishment. It allows them to know what areas where a crime could happen, determine potential victims, and know where evidence are)," she said.
As of now, Acosta said they are currently talking with technology experts to check if it is feasible to install this type of technology in the city as well as the availability of the equipment and its cost.
"Naa na ni siya sa National Capital Region (NCR) but dili pa ta sure kung naa ni dire sa Davao. Unya ang pangutana kung kaya ba sa mga taga-Davao mag-comply ni (The technology is already available in the NCR but we are not sure if it is already here in Davao. We also have to see if Dabawenyos can comply with it)," she said.
She said they also considered the status of the businesses since a lot of establishments have only started to recover from the pandemic.
"Gusto nato magsabay ang public safety pati ang economic recovery sa atoang mga businesses. Dili pud ta gusto nga ma-over burden sila kay usahay pag high-tech ra pud kaayo ang CCTV basin mahal para pud kaayo (We want the businesses to recover but at the same time ensure public safety. However, we also do not want to burden the businesses with a new set of CCTV, which could be costly to them)," Acosta said.
Acosta said if establishments will not be able to comply or afford the equipment, they already prepared alternative ways.
"Ang suggestion ani kung dili nila kaya ang very modern technology, maghatag sila'g reason why, unya mag-install sila og CCTV but with the specs nga pwede i-recommend sa atoang information technology sector (If business establishments are not able to comply with the ordinance, they have to give us a reasonable explanation but they are still required to install CCTVs with the specs that will be recommended by our information technology sector)," she said.
Meanwhile, this proposal has yet to undergo a committee hearing. KSD
