Empower students to prevent them from being scammed, kidnapped — Rep. Chan

Rep. Cindi Chan, lone district of Lapu-Lapu City, asks the Department of Education and private schools to teach children how to avoid being kidnapped or being victims of fraud. | Futch Anthony Inso

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Philippines — House Representative Cindi King-Chan of the Lone District of Lapu-Lapu City has asked the Department of Education and private schools to empower their students to avoid them from being victimized by fraud and kidnapping.

Chan made the statement after the parents of the four minors, who were victims of a foiled abduction, sought the help of the congresswoman to fast-track the investigation of the incident.

READ: Face of man tagged in foiled abduction of 4 kids in Lapu-Lapu caught on CCTV – police

Foiled abduction of minors

The four minors were brought to an apartment in Barangay Bankal after the suspect offered them to participate in a photoshoot to endorse a milk tea brand in exchange for a large amount of money.

They were forced by the suspect to go inside a room, however, they resisted and escaped from the suspect.

“Ang DepEd ato nang gipahimangnoan. Hasta ang mga private schools nga isulti gyud sa mga students nga ayaw gyud ug kakuan anang mga dili mo kaila, dili mo makigkita, dili mo makig-chat. We have to empower our youth kay kita parents, kita teachers, dili man ta naa nila 24/7,” Chan said.

(We already warned them. Even the private schools that they should tell the students that they should not talk to persons whom they do not recognize, they should not meet them, they should not chat with them. We have to empower our youth, because we parents, we teachers, we are not with them 24/7.)

READ: Minors in Lapu-Lapu escape alleged abduction 

Intensify surveillance, info gathering

Chan said she hoped that this would never happen again with the intervention of the police.

The congresswoman ordered the police to intensify their surveillance and information gathering.

“Atong (gihandom) gipahugtan nila ilang intelligence, ilang surveillance nga wala nay ingon ani nga sindikato nga mohaylo na pod sa atong mga kabatan-onan,” she said.

(We (hope that they) tightened their intelligence, their surveillance that there will beno more syndicates like this that will try to target the youth.)

Implement curfew

She said that the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LCPO) might also gather intel reports from their counterparts in the neighboring cities and municipalities for similar incidents.

Aside from this, Chan also urged the LCPO to intensify the implementation of the curfew ordinance in the city.

The city’s curfew starts at 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.

ALSO READ: PNP arrests leader, members of notorious kidnap-for-ransom gang in Rizal