PNP on heightened alert for Holy Week

MANILA — All units of the Philippine National Police (PNP) have been placed on heightened alert as part of security preparations to ensure the public’s safety during the observance of Holy Week.

PNP officer-in-charge Lt. Gen. Rhodel Sermonia said the security alert status started last Sunday at 8 a.m. and will last until Easter Sunday, April 9 at 8 a.m.

Under heightened alert, at least 80 percent of the 227,000-strong police force are available for deployment.

In a statement, Sermonia said the measure would ensure maximum availability of police officers and resources for law enforcement and public safety operations during the Holy Week.

“The safety and security of the public is our utmost priority. We encourage everyone to cooperate with authorities and follow safety protocols to ensure a peaceful and meaningful Holy Week observance,” he added.

Being a religious event for Roman Catholics, the Holy Week could be exploited by threat groups to launch atrocities, such as bombings and other violent criminal acts targeting government forces, according to the PNP official.

To prevent potential attacks, Sermonia has ordered all police commanders to exercise extreme caution and pre-empt atrocities by beefing up security at all places of convergence, including transport hubs, places of worship, beaches, resorts, markets, leisure parks and malls.

The PNP will also deploy its “red teams” to ensure the compliance of police officers with the directive of national headquarters.

PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said they have also deployed their K9 dogs at transportation hubs to help in the screening of personal belongings of travelers.

Fajardo added that they are not letting their guard down even if their intelligence units have not monitored credible threats to security.

“We will continue to monitor and coordinate with some law enforcement agencies to make sure that we won’t miss any threat to security,” she said in Filipino in an interview with GMA News yesterday.