In preparation for the upcoming Miss Universe 2017 pageant and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit, police officials said that “strict and elaborate” security measures are underway to ensure that the most-awaited events will turn out be successful.
Davao City Police Office spokesperson Catherine dela Rey on Wednesday said they would prevent any untoward security incident to happen “before, during, or close to and after” both events.
“Strict and elaborate security measures will be in place to prevent the lawless elements from disrupting these activities,” dela Rey said.
Dela Rey pointed out that while the police and other government agencies will concentrate on security matters, other enforcement agencies will make sure that there will be a safe and successful holding of the Miss Universe pageant and ASEAN Summit.
She added that protocol officers, who will secure the delegates and candidates safety, are already being tapped and readied. Venue preparations and security survey are also not overlooked.
“The police are conducting security assessment on a daily basis to make sure that the places and sites of Miss Universe pageant and ASEAN summit are safe,” dela Rey said.
With that, the local police will be deploying 1,000 security personnel for the major events.
Traffic Group Chief P/Supt. Ernesto Castillo, for his part, stated that they had conducted several inspections for the traffic flow for the incoming events.
“No roads will be closed for the ASEAN Summit and Miss Universe pageant,” Castillo said.
Office of Civil Defense (OCD) – Davao Region has also conducted several command conferences as preparation for the ASEAN Summit and Miss Universe pageant.
Leoncio Cirunay, director of the OCD Davao, revealed their agency would lead the emergency preparedness and response, and that three components have been formed to address any concern adequately.
“We will actively monitor the situation; the EPR with our incident management team is ready to respond to any eventuality,” he said.
Cirunay stated that they would rely much on the city being the host of the event since the Central 911, Task Force Davao and Joint Task Force Haribon, Civil Security Unit, and DCPO would be together in providing security to the visitors.
Cirunay said they are expecting around 500 to 1000 foreign visitors this month.
“We are forming incident management teams from the national level to regional and local groups to assist us for the influx of foreign diplomats,” he said.
