‘Ber’ months crime rate down

More active police interventions and increased vigilance of citizens contributed to the decline in crime rate. #Bermonths #policevisibility #crimeratedown

Cops at a police checkpoint inspect riders. (DMN)

Crime volume in the country decreased during the so-called “ber” months since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Wednesday.

From 191,733 crime cases in 2016, the nationwide crime volume during September, October, November and December steadily declined to 154,925 in 2017 and 163,821 in 2018 based on data from the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM).

The figure also showed the decline of crime volume from 393,150 from January to August 2016 to 365,716 in 2017 and 326,572 in 2018.

This year, the PNP has recorded 307,091 cases from January to August.

PNP chief Gen. Oscar Albayalde said this breaks the trend that crimes spike during the “ber” months.

“For now, we have broken this trend. The idea of increased crime volume during ‘ber’ months is slowly becoming a thing of the past,” Albayalde told reporters.

“People start shopping during these months. Once they have the money, they use this for shopping purposes or buying of gifts as early as September. We prepare for gift-giving come Christmas Day in December. This is also primarily the reason why some petty crimes rise during this season,” he explained.

The PNP attributed the lower crime rates to the intensified campaign of President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration against all forms of criminality, particularly against illegal drugs.

“Partly, this can be attributed to more active police interventions and increased vigilance of our citizens during this period brought about by strong public awareness thru the media,” Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief, said earlier.

“It is now a myth in NCR. We have reversed that at least since 2016,” added Eleazar.

He directed all district commanders in Metro Manila to be more alert against criminal syndicates and to intensify its security operations in places of convergence such as malls, shopping complexes and transport terminals where people tend to congregate.

He also renewed his appeal to the public to help and cooperate with authorities in apprehending those involved in criminal activities.