NAGA CITY (Nov. 10) – As local government officials and representatives of different sectors have expressed disappointment over the worsening peace and order situation in the city, the Senate is set to hold a hearing on this matter.
City Mayor Jesse M. Robredo disclosed that Sen. Noynoy Aquino has called for a senate hearing into the city's worsening peace and order situation. The hearing, which is scheduled for this coming Tuesday (13 November), is the only official response of the national government to the open letter.
It can be recalled that the dramatic increase in the number of organized and violent crimes have prompted the city government together with prominent leaders in the various sectors, to publish an open letter to the President, seeking assistance in the crisis the city is facing.
The open letter, signed by no less than Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legaspi, university presidents, commerce and industry, media, as well as civic group leaders, was published Wednesday in major national newspapers. In the letter, the signatories aired their concerns over the ineffectiveness and mismanagement of P/S Supt. Balligi Agnanayon Tira, PNP OIC Regional Director and P/Supt. Amor Macoy, Naga PNP OIC Chief of Police.
Instead of an official response to the letter, PNP officials in Camp Crame sent a letter to the city government which outlined the reasons for the re-assignment of fourteen Naga police officers.
Augmentation force
On Tuesday, a day after a deadly robbery incident at a fast-food chain, around a hundred members of the Regional Mobile Group (RMG) were sent to the city from Camp Simeon Ola in Legazpi city. The police officers, all with the rank of Police Officer 1 (PO1), were immediately posted at street corners and other locations throughout the city.
With the increase in police officers, Robredo is still in doubt whether it will be enough to curb crime in the city.
"Sana permanente. Baka niyako garo yan mga manok ta 45 days lang. 45 days lang ang pag-assign saida digdi. Garo lang immersion," the chief executive jokingly remarked, referring to the police officers' intended stay.
"Pero ako lang sasabihon ko, nag-abot sindang one hundred pero kansuogma may na-snatchan sa market. Sa hiling ko kaya baka for show lang, bako man seryoso. Kung seryoso siya (P/S Supt. Tira), riribayan niya si (P/Supt.) Macoy. Dawa tawanan mo sanribong pulis, kun dai man namamanage na marhay," Robredo added.
The mayor also said that P/Supt. Macoy's assignment was not valid because S/P Supt. Tira is just the Officer in Charge (OIC) Regional Director, not the official Regional Director.
Beda Priela, Bikol Regional Governor for the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), also shared his sentiments on the worsening crisis in the city.
"An kahagadan kan sector kan negosyo, magkaigwa nin assurance na ma-reinar an katuninungan nin huli ta kun mayo nin katuninungan, katakutan an yaon. Kun matakot an mga tawo na magdigdi sa Naga, siyempre mayo na nin mamamakal digdi,” Priela shared.
Priela also expressed concern over the repercussions Naga's economy might suffer because of the unstable situation in the city. According to Priela, the business sector and the local government's efforts to attract investors might go to waste if the problems continue unchecked.