Labra: Ermita operation not in response to barangay Resolution

The saturation drive in barangay Ermita last Friday afternoon was not in response to the resolution the barangay officials had passed last week.

Investigation and Detective Management Unit chief Paul Labra yesterday said that the operation was already planned even before the resolution came out.

He said the saturation drive stemmed from reports that illegal activities continue to exist in the barangay.

Earlier last week, the Ermita council led by barangay captain Felicisimo Rupinta passed a resolution asking the police to conduct a saturation drive in sitio Warwick.

Rupinta said sitio Warwick has become a haven for hardened criminals such as hold-uppers, snatchers, illegal drug traders and wanted persons. The barangay captain also noted that the area is just near the City Hall and the Carbon Police Station.

During the operation, Labra and his men confiscated 17 video karera machines and moli-moli, and arrested six persons they caught in the act of playing video karera. The operatives also seized drug paraphernalia in the Ermita proper.

But Labra refused to comment as to whether the barangay officials have the political will to eradicate the illegal activities in their area.

Labra said that the best way to solve the illegal drug problem in the barangay is for its officials to coordinate with the police as only through close coordination can illegal activities be minimized. - Flor Z. Perolina