The Davao City Police Office (DCPO) will be deploying the maximum number of personnel to provide security coverage to the many activities of the Araw ng Dabaw celebrations and the Iron Man 70.3 triathlon race next month.
“Andam na ang Davao City Police Office para sa Iron Man event. In fact, naka-line up na gyud ang tanang activities from March 1 to March 31 (The Davao City Police Office is ready for the Iron Man event. In fact, all activities from March to March 31 are already lined up),” said DCPO spokesperson PMaj Catherine Dela Rey over Davao City Disaster Radio on Thursday.
Dela Rey said the security templates for the whole month have already been finalized. For the biggest events in March, the DCPO will be assisted by the Police Regional Office XI (PRO XI), auxiliaries, and other force multipliers.
At least 2,000 PNP personnel, some of whom will be from PRO XI, are to be deployed to secure the Parada Dabawenyo activity on March 18.
“Mu-augment ang Police Regional Office og 300 ka security personnel para sa Araw ng Dabaw kay ang atoa man pud pinakadako na deployment kay ang March 18, mao ng Parada Dabawenyo, na 2,000 ka personnel atong i-deploy (The Police Regional Office will be augmenting our forces with 300 of their security personnel for the Araw ng Davao because our biggest deployment will be on March 18 which is the Parada Dabawenyo where 2,000 personnel will be deployed),”
For the security of the Iron Man 70.3, Dela Rey said personnel will be deployed as early as March 23 to scout the route of the race. At least 1,000 security personnel will be providing security for the Iron Kids race on March 24 and another 1,000 will be deployed to secure the Iron Girls Marathon on March 25.
The main race, the Iron Man 70.3, will be held on March 26 and will have at least 2,950 security personnel. Of these, 1,200 will be from the Philippine National Police, 500 auxiliaries and 1,250 force multipliers.
Dela Rey said that for the Iron Man, the DCPO will be providing security within the borders of the city, beyond which the security forces of Davao del Norte will take over.
Citizens are advised to plan their travels on that day, or if possible, to avoid unnecessary trips due to the expected traffic during the sports event as the northbound lane beginning at the Azuela Cove will be closed.
“Para makatabang ‘sab mo na less ang bantayanan in terms pud sa mga disgrasya ana kay wa man pud ta kabalo sa panahon (So you help by not becoming a liability in terms if any untoward incidents because we really cannot tell),” Dela Rey said.
The DCPO spokesperson urged people to follow the usual protocols enforced during maximum security events and to keep in mind the city’s culture of security campaign.
“Magtinabangay ta nga musunod sa mga guidelines and protocols. Abisuhi ang inyohang mga amigo, relatives na musuroy diri sa atong ginapatuman na culture of security (Let us work together in obeying the guidelines and protocols. Let your visiting friends and relatives know about the existing culture of security),” Dela Rey added. CIO
