Res Gestae
Beware, it’s Christmas season
Everyone has the reason to celebrate the yuletide season.
For one, it is appropriate that Christmas comes at the last month of the year, to give everyone the opportunity to look back, count the blessings, and be thankful for the Divine Providence at work in the past eleven months.
Besides, December seems to be the most prosperous month of the year. There is the 13th month pay, other bonuses, and, for government employees, the PNoy’s cash incentive. With this, it is expected that shoppers will flock the malls, markets, bazaars and other commercial landmarks to treat themselves and buy Christmas presents for loved ones.
December, as the month with longest holidays, is a time to unwind, bond with families and friends, and to welcome the New Year.
But, while most people are making the best out of the season for themselves and for others, there are few others who find this part of the year a perfect time to stage their criminal and other nefarious activities.
This is why I forewarn everyone to be aware because it is Christmas season.
During Christmas, it is not only Santa Claus who is coming to town. Snatchers, robbers, thieves in different faces, like the “salisi” gang, “budol-budol” gang, “dugo-dugo” gang and many others, come to our cities and neighborhood.
To know how these gangs operate, watch Talakayan Sa Isyung Pulis every Thursday at CPU TV Channel (SkyCable Channel 13) at 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. for live cablecast or Tuesday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. for the replay.
It is expected that police stations will maximize the deployment of its personnel to increase police visibility. There will also be checkpoint operations and other saturation drives together with the force multipliers, especially the barangay tanods. But all these pro-active security measures will not be enough to deter the rise of criminalities, especially when the people themselves, as individuals or groups, are not cautious of their safety and security.
We usually hear the region’s top cop, Chief Supt. Cipriano Querol Jr., say that the Philippine National Police is no super body. It is a clear affirmation of their lack of resources, from personnel to patrol cars, to keep everyone safe in their homes, streets, and communities. Querol is telling us this because we have to be aware, as a community, to lift a finger to combat the criminals and avoid becoming victims of crimes. And Querol is right. Safety and security starts from oneself. Crimes are committed because victims provide the opportunities for these criminals to commit the acts. Otherwise, crimes will not prosper.
And when can we say that we provide criminals the opportunity to commit the act? There are many instances, but the most common are when we: 1) bring money more than we need for groceries and shopping spree; 2) flaunt our jewelries by wearing more than the necessary; 3) fail to heed precautionary measures, like leaving laptops and other valuables inside our cars; 4) go home late and alone at night; 5) give our trust to people we meet for the first time in malls or streets; 6) we become complacent with our surroundings; and 7) do not memorize any emergency numbers, like 166 and 117.
Basically, keeping ourselves safe and secure this Christmas season is simple. We need not depend only to our police or tanods to spare us from becoming victims of criminals. We have only to be aware and do our role in keeping our communities safe and secure for everyone to live, work, invest, do business and celebrate Christmas!
Share your safety and security tips to rogatepnp@yahoo.com or 09202230577.*
