With less than a week to go before school starts, two students lost P50,000 tuition money to motorcycle-riding robbers in Manila Friday.
A report on dzXL radio said the unidentified robbers also took the cell phones of Emil Lester Peña, 19; and Martin Lansangan.
Peña lost some P50,000 in tuition money while Lansangan lost mobile phones.
Initial police investigation showed the unidentified robbers poked handguns at the victims before speeding away.
Appeal to mall owners
One week before school starts, police made a last-minute appeal to owners of some malls near schools to allow police personnel inside the establishments to protect students.
Philippine National Police spokesman Chief Superintendent Leonardo Espina said the mall patrols would have complemented the police assistance desks at school campuses.
“We just need cooperation of the owners of the malls. May experience kami na ang malls ayaw ang police visibility inside. That’s why we can only do it outside (We need cooperation from owners of the malls. We have had experiences where malls refused to let us conduct police visibility operations inside. That’s why our visibility is limited to the outside)," Espina said in an interview on dwIZ radio.
He said students and parents are already going to malls and shopping for school supplies in preparation for School Year 2010-2011, which starts June 15.
Despite the lack of cooperation, he said police assigned to areas outside the malls will not be pulled out and will instead remain at their posts.
In the meantime, Espina said the PNP would continue with its police assistance desks to patrol campuses for criminals such as muggers and drug pushers.
“Mga nakatambay sa labas, check natin ang nagtitinda sa labas baka may illegal drug na tinitinda (The desks will keep watch outside the schools and check for criminals such as drug pushers)," he said.
Each assistance desk will have a team with seven members with a patrol vehicle, communication equipment, and firepower to combat threats to students.
The units will use the buddy system in conducting patrols, he added.
“Kung mas malaki ang university, mas marami ang police assitance desk na [ilalagay] sa school na yan. Iikot at iikot at sisitahin (The bigger the school, the more police assistance desks will be set up there)," he said.
“They will be very visible in these police assistance. Kung di ma-prevent ang crime at natigbak ang estudyante they can enforce the law (Our men will be very visible in these police assistance desks. If they cannot prevent a crime, at least they can quickly respond to contingencies and enforce the law)," he added. - LBG, RJAB Jr
