By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan/Philippine News Agency
MANILA — National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) head, Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, on Tuesday commended the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) for holding a simulation exercise (SIMEX) at the Cubao Araneta Business Center that aims to assess the alertness and operational readiness of PNP personnel.
Eleazar said he has a directive to all five police districts in the metropolis to stage SIMEX, including bomb explosion and active shooting scenarios, aimed at testing the preparedness of the police and to ensure public safety.
The NCRPO covers the QCPD, Manila Police District, Northern Police District, Southern Police District, and Eastern Police District.
“Our intention is to prevent untoward incidents but we still have a contingency plan. The SIMEX is not only for police units but for the response teams from different agencies and concerned local government unit. We will build confidence [in responding to emergencies],” Eleazar told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) in a phone interview.
Eleazar said the value of time in responding to an incident is precious, noting that responders must always remember the proper procedure and protocols set to prevent more casualties.
“By doing these exercises, we review what to do because in the real scenario, it’s really difficult if we are not prepared. We have a contingency plan in case of these events but more importantly, the simulation exercise is a test of whether we are able to observe protocols and we are able to determine lapses or areas of improvement,” he said.
Meanwhile, QCPD director, Brig. Gen. Joselito Esquivel Jr. said they conducted a terror attack simulation exercise with explosion at Food Park of Cubao Araneta Business Center on Times Square Ave. corner Gen. Roxas Ave. in Cubao.
After the explosion, a security guard informed tourist police officers who were patrolling near the blast site and immediately responded to help the “victims.”
The incident was simultaneously relayed to the Cubao Police Station and to other concerned government agencies such as the Bureau of Fire Protection, Red Cross, and Quezon City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
The simulation exercise was successfully carried out wherein criticisms were noted by the QCPD Command for consideration in responding to terror attacks and other similar emergency situations.
“Aside from assessing how quick we can respond to terror attacks, we also want to ensure here that we do what is right on the ground following the Standard Operating Procedures in responding to terror attacks. Through the simulation drills, it will be an avenue for us to identify lapses or areas that need improvement as well as to test the readiness, capability and serviceability of our equipment,” Esquivel said.
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