In support to President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of martial law in Mindanao, the Cotabato City government has started implementing “No ID, No entry” policy, the city mayor here said Thursday.
The decision was reached after Mayor Cynthia Guiani-Sayadi met all village officials in an emergency meeting Wednesday night in the aftermath of the bloody terrorist attacks by ISIS-inspired Maute Group and Abu Sayyaf.
Sayadi first directed all village chiefs to intensify visibility and to conduct checkpoints “in areas where it is necessary.”
“This is to ensure (at barangay level) that no intruders will be able to penetrate and disturb the residents,” she said in a statement.
Residents and travellers will expect tightened checkpoints along the city’s entry and exit points to be implemented by Army-led Joint Task Force Kutawato (JTFK).
Heightened alert is also implemented in the coastal areas and communities living near riverbanks.
In declaring “No ID, No Entry” policy, Sayadi said all those entering the city from north and south section of Cotabato City.
Every motorist is required to log-in to checkpoints and present valid identification cards after reports that some inmates of Marawi City jail were freed by Maute Terror Groups who attacked the city.
Some of the inmates were Maute members from Cotabato City.
“In the exercise of public safety, we deem it necessary that everyone going in and out of the city is well accounted for,” Sayadi said.
The mayor said residents are advised to always bring identification cards whenever they go out of their homes.
“Children must always be accompanied by parents and those without IDs must not go around without companions. The nightly curfew for minors is also still in effect,” Sayadi in a statement also said.(PNA)
