PNP sets 5-minute crime response in Metro manila

MANILA, Philippines — Police in Metro Manila are just a phone call away and will respond to crimes and other emergencies in five minutes.

Philippine National Police chief Gen. Nicolas Torre launched the five-minute emergency policy yesterday, dialing back his promise of a three-minute PNP response in highly urbanized centers.

People in need of assistance can dial the 911 emergency hotline and police in their communities will respond immediately, Torre said.

“If you dial 911, police will be there in five minutes. That’s our promise,” he said.

 Torre initially promised a three-minute emergency response time, which he implemented in Quezon City when he was its police chief.

However, Torre said he and other police officials agreed on a middle ground of five minutes after his first command conference on Tuesday.

He said the Quezon City police is capable of responding to emergencies within three minutes due to the resources it has received from the local government under the leadership of Mayor Joy Belmonte.

To ensure that there are more police on the ground who are ready to respond to crimes and other emergency situations, Torre ordered the deactivation of police community precincts and boxes, which he believes are ineffective.

He prefers police officers roaming their areas of jurisdiction on patrol cars with their radio communication equipment.

“Kung wala rin lang imbestigasyon diyan sa mga police boxes and precincts, I would rather have policemen walk their beats, pound the streets,” he said.

Torre said he would meet with San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora, who chairs the regional peace and order council, to ask for support from Metro Manila mayors for the PNP program.

Torre said the eight-hour shift for police personnel in Metro Manila also started yesterday.

The PNP reduced the working shifts from 12 to eight hours so that police officers can spend more time with their families, he said.

“They are working 72 hours per week. That’s too much based on the labor rules of 40 hours per week,” Torre said.

In exchange for shorter shifts, Torre wants quality service from PNP personnel.

‘Paramihan’ arrest order defended 

Torre defended his order to police to ramp up arrests in anti-crime operations, saying it is different from the reward system during the term of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

The Commission on Human Rights cautioned Torre from using the number of arrests as performance metrics for PNP personnel.

Torre said his directive should not be misconstrued as the quota and reward system during Duterte’s war on drugs. – Janvic Mateo