Crime rate in the country is on the downtrend and with that, kudos must fall on the efforts of the law enforcement agencies particularly the Philippine National Police (PNP).
As reported by PNP chief Gen Oscar Albayalde in his speech during the 118th Police Service Anniversary in Camp Crame on Friday, there is a marked decrease in crime incidents continuously for the past three years which reflects a successful anti-illegal drugs campaign.
The figures based on Albayalde’s report showed that the PNP has conducted a total of 163,622 anti-illegal drugs operations resulting in the arrest of more than 256,000 drug personalities, the death of more than 6,000 in police operations, and the surrender of more than 1,200,000 under Oplan Tokhang. The figures cover the period from July 1, 2016 to July 31, 2019. On the other hand, the operation against high-value targets resulted in the arrest of 3,133, the surrender of 3,705 and the death of 325 in police operations.
Other significant figures show a comparison from more than 626,000 during the period covering July 2015 to June 2016, the total crime volume decreased by 58,276 or 9.30 percent during the first year of President Duterte’s term covering the period July 2016 to June 2017. This further decreased by 79,647 incidents or 14.02 percent on the second year covering the period July 2017 to June 2018, and further went down by 2.91 percent on the third year covering the period July 2018 to June 2019.
Likewise, out of 42,045 barangays, more than 13,000 have been declared drug-free.
But perhaps the most important footnote of the successful campaign against criminalities is the way the operations are done — within the bounds of law and with utmost respect to human rights — in stark contrast to the claims of the critics of the administration.
Significantly, the report is reflected in the new survey that placed the Philippines as the 24th best place to live and work which is just one rung lower than the United States at no. 23, and ahead of China at no. 26.
