More cops to secure key areas; South Bus to boost security

Passengers heading to the south wait for their turn to board the bus at the Cebu South Bus Terminal to take them home for the Christmas holidays in this Dec. 23, 2017 photo.
CDN FILE PHOTO

As activities for Christmas season and Sinulog Festival start today (Dec. 1), the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) will deploy tourist police and traffic patrol group (TPG) in key areas in the city.

Especially in Fuente Osmeña as activities and food fair will start today and people are expecting to flock the place.

Senior Supt. Royina Garma, CCPO director, said that they would be expecting traffic in the area as there would be programs for Christmas and Sinulog festivities to be held there.

“Mag-abotabot na yung mga tao kasi December na. Especially sa (Dec.) 15 and 16 simula ng Simbang Gabi, managhan g’yud,” said Garma.
(The people will start to flock the city center because it’s already December. Especially on Dec. 15 and 16, the start of misa de gallo, we expect more people.)

Starting today, Pasko sa Fuente will start, where there are programs related to Christmas and Sinulog Festival activities will also be held in the place.

Garma said at least four police officers would be deployed to secure the area while another team would be deployed to manage the traffic.

She also said that there would be military personnel who would be deployed in downtown Cebu City to help police manage traffic.

“Tingnan natin yung trend. Magaadjust yung security natin diyan. Magdadagdag tayo kapag kailangan. At kapag manageable naman, then that’s it,” said Garma.
(We will see on the trend. We will be adjusting our security. We will add more security if needed. And if we think it’s manageable then that’s it.)

She also said that police assistance desks would also be set up at malls, which would be manned by tourist police.

Meanwhile, the Cebu South Bus Terminal management would also start beefing up security in the terminal starting Dec. 1 in preparation for expected influx of passengers going home for the holidays.

CSBT Manager Jonathan Tumulak said a new security agency will service the terminal starting today with 35 security guards divided in three shifts round the clock.

“Nagdugang ta og mga gwardya sugod ugma (Dec. 1) pero mo-beef up pa gyod og maayo atong security during unya sa December 21 kay mao na atong gipangandaman alang sa Pasko,” Tumulak said in a phone interview with Cebu Daily News.

Tumulak said that they would be expecting the largest volume of passengers to flock to the terminal starting December 21, since the day falls on a Friday which is the last day of work for most institutions.

Public primary and secondary schools have earlier received an order from the head office of the Department of Education setting December 15 as the last day of classes for the year.