Dumaguete City Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria has turned over 30 electroshock weapons, or stun guns, worth about P150,000, to city police chief, Supt. James Goforth.
The city police is tightening its watch on banks, pawnshops, lending institutions and similar financial outfits, after a spate of robbery/hold-up incidents in the Central Visayas region and other parts of the Philippines.
Sagarbarria said the series of robberies that had targeted pawnshops in Cebu, has prodded the city to augment the security requirements of its police office.
He said he was surprised to learn that most pawnshops in Dumaguete do not employ security guards, or implement safety measures like setting up of closed-circuit television systems.
Goforth also said some financial institutions are lenient about their security measures. Aside from the absence of security guards and CCTV cameras, no physical barriers and alarm systems have been installed, he said.
Goforth said he has talked to the security managers of banks, pawnshops and lending institutions to be vigilant against potential robbers, and also instructed the cops to do a weekly check on these establishments.
There are around 50 pawnshops, 40 banks and 30 lending institutions in Dumaguete City, he added.
Goforth said the stun guns will help the police and civilian public safety officers in temporarily neutralizing would-be criminals, and they will be trained on the proper use of the weapon to avoid unnecessarily harming suspects.
The stun gun is an incapacitating weapon that momentarily immobilizes a person, but it could be harmful to suspects with health problems, he added.
There are also types of stun guns that can temporary render someone unconsciousness, so those who use such weapon must be responsible. Goforth said each of the donated stun guns emits one million volts of electricity.
Sagarbarria assured that the guns will be used only in extreme cases to avoid human rights violations. The electroshock devices will provide protection to police officers as well, he said.
