AMONG the 120,000 police officers who will be deployed during the opening of classes on June 3 are units assigned to address bullying incidents and other threats against students.
PNP spokesperson Colonel Bernard Banac said Thursday, May 30, 2019, that the officers would also be on the lookout for suspected kidnappers, bombers and drug traffickers.
Aside from physical bullying incidents, the police would also watch against cyberbullying, especially through social media.
“Cyberbullying. Ito ngayon ang pinaka-common na form of cyberbullying sa ating mga kabataan. ‘Yung bullying doon sa school talaga ay minimal ‘yung mga incidents, hindi masyadong prevalent at ito ay usually being handled by guidance counselling or school authorities pero ‘yung sa cyberbullying ito ay talagang outside the school,” he said.
Banac said that since 2017, the PNP has recorded 22 cases of cyberbullying, mostly involving minors.
He said nine cyberbullying cases were reported in 2017, 11 in 2018 and two as of March 2019.
Banac urged victims of bullying, particularly their parents, to immediately report such incident to the police.
He also encouraged the parents to always guide their children in using social media.
“Doon naman sa mga magulang ang ating muling paalala ang atin pong parental guidance wala naman pong hihigit pa sa masusi, matyaga at magpagmahal na pag supervise sa ating mga anak. Ito lamang ang ating paraan upang hindi masangkot sa mga bullying incidents ng ating mga anak,” said Banac.
(We remind parents to guide their children. This is the only way that we can prevent bullying incidents.)
“Doon naman sa mga magulang ng mga nagiging biktima ng bullying ganun din po ang ating kailangan, ang pagmamahal, pag unawa sa mga insidenteng ito dahil ang lahat ng involved ay mga minors na anak natin,” he added.
(To parents of bullying victims, we remind them to be more loving and understanding.) (SunStar Philippines)