Travelers told to secure homes for Holy Week trip

MANILA, Philippines - Residents of Metro Manila should “have their homes watched as they leave for a trip to the provinces” for the Holy Week, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Alan Purisima said yesterday.

He ordered the NCRPO’s five district directors to deploy additional foot and mobile patrols in posh subdivisions and commercial centers in Metro Manila as he noted that criminal syndicates like the “Akyat Bahay” and “Acetylene” gangs usually break into homes and shops during the Holy Week.

“We should be on our toes in securing Metro Manila to prevent these criminal elements from taking advantage of the situation,” said Purisima, noting that the intelligence community has not monitored any terrorist threat in the metropolis. 

The NCRPO chief has been checking bus and jeepney terminals and security operations in seaports and airports since Friday and was satisfied with what he saw. He said the public assistance centers established in these areas were working satisfactorily to assists motorists and commuters.

Purisima told the NCRPO’s five district directors to coordinate with security officials of commercial establishments and homeowners associations of posh subdivisions to elicit their help in securing their areas.

Before leaving for a trip to the province, Purisima asked people to secure their homes by padlocking the doors and shutting the windows. He said homeowners should ask “friendly” neighbors to closely watch their homes while they are away.

“They should also unplug the appliances so as to prevent fires,” said Purisima, as the weather bureau warned of hot weather during the Holy Week.

The NCRPO remained on normal alert status yesterday but Purisima did not rule out raising it to another level “once the need arises.”