City cops given 500 handcuffs, 25 gas masks Doris C. Bongcac Cebu Daily News
November 14, 2006
Cebu City policemen are now better equipped to implement crowd control measures during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in December.
This developed after Mayor Tomas Osmeña accepted on Monday a P1.5-million donation that included 500 sets of disposable handcuffs and 25 sets of gas masks from Haarlemmermeer City in Netherlands, which is Cebu City's sister city.
The donation arrived recently together with diving equipment for the Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation (ERUF).
Osmeña said the gas masks are made of heat-resistant polycarbonate glass, while the handcuffs are made of gray colored plastic that look like wristbands and once locked could only be removed with the use of a cutter.
The donation, however, is part of the regular sister cities program with Haarlemmermeer and is not solely intended for use during the ASEAN Summit.
After receiving the donation, Osmeña immediately turned them over to acting Cebu City Police Chief Melvin Gayotin.
The turnover of the donation was timed with the summit security briefing for city officials held at the mayor's office conference room at noon on Monday.
Cebu City councilors were briefed on police’s security preparations by members of the summit security committee led by Central Visayas Police Chief Silverio Alarcio Jr. and Cebu Provincial Police Chief Vicente Loot Jr.
“We want the councilors updated on the summit preparations. The last thing we need is when people ask our councilors (about the summit) and they say I don't know,” Osmeña said.
Present during the briefing were Councilors Augustus Pe Jr., Procopio Fernandez, Eduardo Rama, Hilario Davide III, Arsenio Pacaña, Sylvan Jakosalem, Christopher Alix, Jocelyn Pesquera, and Gabriel Leyson.
Vice Mayor Michael Rama was on an official trip to Manila and was not around for the briefing.
Nagiel Bañacia, head of the city government summit organizing committee, said the councilors were asked to help disseminate information on what the summit is all about and how this would affect the city.
“It is our responsibility to inform the public what will happen that day. There are so many misinformations that malls will be closed and there will be no PUJs (public utility jeepneys) that day. But it will just be like a normal holiday,” Bañacia said.
The councilors were also informed of their role as “panic buttons” during the summit.
Because of their familiarity with the city and the activities here, Councilors will be assigned as support staff of the Department of Foreign Affairs personnel assigned to each of the participating ASEAN ministers.
In case someone from the delegation would suffers from a toothache, the city councilors will be fielded to extend assistance. They may be asked to recommend dentist and dental clinics, Bañacia said.
