Cebu City Police to parents: Report any “Momo Challenge” incident to us

Senior Inspector Arieza Otida, PIO of the Cebu City Police Office.

CEBU CITY, Philippines – While there are still no incidents related to the “Momo Challenge” in Cebu City, local police are strongly advising parents to closely monitor their children when watching online videos and to report any incident of the controversial game.

Senior Inspector Arieza Otida, public information officer of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said they have been directed by their superiors from the Philippine National Police (PNP) to remind parents on how to prevent their children from being victims of the Momo Challenge.

Read more: Momo challenge scare: Magpale urges parents to monitor children’s online usage

“For now, the least the PNP can do, aside from investigating the matter, is to remind our parents that they need to closely supervise their children when watching videos online,” said Otida.

Otida suggested for parents to come up with measures that will help them monitor their children such as implementing schedules when to access online video streaming websites.

“If possible, they should limit their children’s screentime, and they should also be aware of what are the possible contents being provided online,” she added.

The CCPO also urges parents to report to the police if their children fall prey to the game so they can have the incident investigated.

The hotline numbers of the CCPO are 0966 465 2556 or 0918 268 2846.

The “Momo Challenge” allegedly instructs its viewers, mostly minors, to commit self-harm.

A video teaser of the challenge has reportedly been circulating online but YouTube, the largest video sharing website, denied reports that Momo Challenge was included in YouTube Kids, a channel tailored for children. /bmjo