PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) Chief General Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr. has ordered the deployment of officers from the Camp Crame-based Reactionary Standby Support Force (RSSF) in Metro Manila (MM) to help reinforce the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) in securing the metropolis during the forthcoming series of holidays.

Azurin said the additional personnel will supplement police presence in places of huge convergence, including public transport terminals, malls, markets, schools, and churches in the metropolis now being guarded by NCRPO headed by Brig. Gen. Jonnel C. Estomo.

“This is also part of our preparation for the upcoming All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day holidays. Tulong-tulong tayo sa pagbabantay sa seguridad ng mga matataong lugar.

They will serve to complement in the implementation of the security measures until the last quarter of the year,” the PNP chief said on Monday.

Azurin cited the need to monitor the movement of people in public places, especially in the days ahead when the country transitions to the holiday season.

“We have eased the protocols compared to the previous years, so there is [a] higher demand for [a] security protocol to be in placed to make sure that the general public will not be complacent against possible crime incidents,” he said.

Estomo said the presence of 240 RSSF personnel will help support the necessary number of policemen tasked to cover so-called “crime-prone areas” in the metropolis under his S.A.F.E. (“Seen, Appreciated and Felt by the people through Extraordinary actions”) NCR (National Capital Region) program.

“I greatly appreciate the support of our Chief PNP, P/Gen. Rodolfo Azurin, Jr., in sending augmentation personnel to support our campaign tagged as S.A.F.E. NCR, which aims, among others, to boost police presence through the invigorated foot, mobile, and motorcycle patrol,” the NCRPO chief said.

The reinforcement battalion was officially received by the NCRPO the other day amid their ongoing effort to ensure the public’s safety, including tourists expected to visit entertainment areas in the southern part of the metropolis, which is under the watch of the Southern Police District (SPD).

“Ngayong nag umpisa na ang ‘Ber’ months, anticipated na natin na dadami ang bibisita sa mga entertainment areas under our jurisdiction. Kaya malaking tulong itong reinforcement na ibinigay ng ating Chief PNP upang mapunuan ang kakailanging dami ng pulis na magbabantay sa ating lansangan,” Estomo said.

Azurin has put a “premium” on genuine police visibility in the streets amid his program to ensure the delivery of immediate police response should it be needed by the community and further deter criminal elements from preying on their targets in the absence of the police.

So far, 368 members of the SPD under Col. Kirby John B. Kraft have been divided into 3-shifts or 8-hours of duty to patrol the streets.

Estomo said the maximum deployment of NCRPO personnel in the streets is part of his S.A.F.E. program, which aims to ensure that Metro Manila police personnel are ‘seen, appreciated and felt’ through the delivery of ‘extraordinary’ public service.