SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – A state-of-the-art monitoring system that provides a live feed of images from remote surveillance areas here has been installed to boost security operations and public safety.
SBMA chairman and administrator Wilma T. Eisma on Wednesday said the system, consists of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, were installed in various areas of the Freeport that are viewed from a bank of monitors and a LED (light-emitting diode) wall at the SBMA Law Enforcement Department (LED) command center.
The system allows the simultaneous viewing of live images from 96 different camera angles.
“It’s quite impressive,” the SBMA chief said, describing the system. “And I hope that this will be something really effective not only in crime prevention, but also in promoting public safety and environmental protection in the Freeport.”
Eisma also said the installation of SBMA’s modern monitoring system was made possible by funding from Common Use Service Area (CUSA) fees collected by the Subic agency from business locators, residents, and tourists entering the Freeport.
“Now that we have this state-of-the-art monitoring system, violators can easily be detected and apprehended. Subic is known for its strict enforcement of traffic rules, as well as for its high level of security, and this system brings us to a higher level of police work,” she added.
SBMA police chief Major Vicente Tolentino said that most of the tourist sites in the Freeport are now covered by the CCTV system that was installed by Wireless Link Technologies, Inc., a leading wireless technology provider based in Manila.
PLDT Subictel has also installed CCTVs at the sentry posts of three housing areas in Subic: Binictican, Kalayaan, and Cubi.
“The SBMA will be paying for the system installation contracted out to Wireless Link Technologies, but the cameras provided by PLDT Subictel are for free,“ Eisma said.
Tolentino said that all the CCTVs are monitored 24/7 by LED officers inside the command center.
“We want people to know that the Subic Bay Freeport Zone is one of the safest places in the country, where they could relax without fear of being accosted by criminal elements. At the same time, we want criminal elements to know that we are ready for them and that we can monitor their every move here,” Tolentino said.
The SBMA police head added that more security monitoring systems will be put in place in other areas of the Freeport under the second phase of the agency’s CCTV program. (Malou Dungog/PNA)
