By Annabel Consuelo Petinglay/PNA
SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique — Antiqueños who have transactions at the provincial capitol are being asked to strictly wear the visitor’s identification (ID) card, and to log in-log out at the security guard post at the main entrance.
Antique Provincial Jail Warden Eduardo Ebon, tapped to assist in the implementation of security, said they are instituting security measures to ensure thst the capitol employees, as well as the transacting persons, are safe following the bomb scare at the capitol on Monday.
In an interview on Thursday, Ebon said that although the incident could have been just a joke, the provincial government does not take it lightly.
“We remind the public to surrender their identification card in exchange of the capitol issued visitors ID to the security guard assigned and write their names on the logbook,” he said.
He said that this ruling also applies to national government personnel who visit the capitol.
“The policy will be implemented uniformly,” he said.
Aside from the visitor’s ID and the logbook, the security guard also checks bags of clients and ask them to deposit duly-licensed firearms. “We have the one entry, one exit door policy,” he said.
The public is asked to enter and exit at the front door of the capitol.
So far, Ebon said the situation at the capitol has already normalized after Monday’s bomb scare but advised employees, who are asked to wear their official IDs as they dispense their work, not to panic if a similar situation happens.
“Don’t forward messages that could cause panic to other employees,” he said.
He said the presence of suspicious-looking persons or behaviors should be immediately reported to the security guard or the proper authorities.
The bomb scare was texted to two heads of offices at the capitol last Monday by somebody, who was believed to be out to sabotage the services at the capitol.
After an inspection by the police, only a box containing around three kilos of stones with a Happy New Year greeting was found inside the female comfort room.
