By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan/PNA
MANILA — The Philippine National Police (PNP) continues to strengthen its cooperation with the police agencies of other countries in fighting crime and maintaining peace and order.
This was emphasized on Monday by PNP chief, Director General Oscar Albayalde, who is back from his attendance to the 84th General Assembly of the International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO-Interpol) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
“The Philippine delegation to the 84th Interpol General Assembly brings back encouraging prospects for better cooperation in law enforcement and domestic security,” Albayalde told reporters on Monday’s press briefing.
On the sidelines of the assembly, Albayalde also reported that the PNP delegation forged two Memoranda of Understanding with the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom, represented by Director General Lynne Owens, regarding cooperation and exchange of information against organized crime; and with the Australian Federal Police, led by Commissioner Andrew Colvin, on wider areas of cooperation between the Philippine and Australian police forces.
Albayalde, in particular, said that the MOA between the PNP and the Australian Federal Police aims to strengthen the existing framework originally established by an earlier MOU signed in Canberra on October 2, 2012 for cooperation on law enforcement, through consultations and information sharing in all areas of law enforcement; and conduct of coordinated operations across all transnational crime types and cooperative assistance in the field of capacity building and professional development.
He also added that the PNP delegation held a bilateral meeting with the Singapore Police Force delegation, led by Commissioner Hoong Wee Teck, where the two groups discussed matters of mutual concern regarding information sharing on wanted fugitives, trafficking in persons, smuggling and drug trafficking.
The PNP chief said the event’s theme “Policing in the Information Age” tackled issues on the new dimensions of crime that interplay with terrorism, drug trafficking and other forms of transnational criminal activity thru the “dark net and underground economy”.
“I share the observation of Interpol Secretary General Jeurgen Stock, that police needed to embrace technology and innovation to stay a step ahead of sophisticated cyber criminals,” he noted.
He said the venue of the 2018 Interpol Assembly showcases this observation as Dubai serves as a model city and perfect example of heavy investment in technology-based smart policing that they personally witnessed and experienced.
The tri-agency Philippine delegation was represented by the PNP, which is the Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) in the Philippines, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime (PCTC).
