Mimaropa cops step up school visibility amid campus violence

CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro — In the wake of school violence erupting across the country, including the September 18 shooting at Banga National High School in South Cotabato, the Mimaropa police have improved school-oriented policing. 

The regional police set up 9,319 Police Assistance Desks in schools, deployed 4,071 personnel tasked to handle school-related activities, and conducted campus visitations, safety lectures, workshops, simulation exercises, and security coordination meetings with school officials.

In a statement on Tuesday, Brig. General Christopher R. Dela Cruz, MIMAROPA police director, said the Region IV-B police force is bolstering Project POPULAR (Police-to-Population Ratio), an initiative begun in July that was designed to bring police personnel closer to schools, families, and communities through regular barangay engagements, household visits, and “accessible reporting channels for peace and security concerns.”

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“The safety of our learners is a shared responsibility, and it begins with keeping our lines of communication open with our schools, families, barangays, and communities,” Dela Cruz said.

“Through Project POPULAR, we want our people to know that their police are within reach, ready to listen and ready to respond when there is a legitimate concern that may affect their safety,” he added.

Project POPULAR encourages direct, sustained coordination between police units and the Department of Education, parents, school authorities, provincial governments of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan. Dela Cruz said it ensures credible security threats are promptly reported, assessed, and acted upon — a proactive approach seen as critical in preventing tragedies similar to those that have recently shaken other parts of the country.

“When concerns are reported early, the police and our partners have a better opportunity to assess the situation and take the appropriate action,” the regional director emphasized./coa