De La Salle University

University Student Government

Legislative Assembly

P.L.A.R. No. 2014-01-26

Status: Approved

Resolution No. 2014-25

Sponsored by: National Affairs Committee

Adrianne Ardon, 68th ENG
Meg Buensalido, EXCEL2014
Jeffrey Dy, CATCH2T15
Reigner Sanchez, EDGE2013

Bianca Soriano, FAST2012

Lisa Veegas, STC Campus

Authored by:
Adrianne Ardon, 68th ENG
Bianca Soriano, FAST2012

RESOLUTION CALLING FOR THE APPROVAL AND RELEASE OF THE

MANIFESTO ON THE INSTALLATION OF CCTV CAMERAS AROUND MANILA
A resolution calling for the government of Manila City regarding the installation of CCTV
cameras around the city to promote safety and security.
Whereas, the Legislative Assembly is the highest policy-making body of the University
Student Government (University Student Government Constitution, Article XIV,
Section 1);
Whereas, the USG shall have the power of which emanates from the student body. It
shall be the sole, unified, autonomous and democratic representative body of the
students (University Student Government Constitution, Article III, Section 1);
Whereas, the National Affairs Committee shall discuss national and sectoral issues and
present recommendations on such to the Legislative Assembly (University
Student Government Constitution, Article V, Section 11);
Whereas, the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras will be installed to monitor road
activities in strategic areas in Manila such as Divisoria, Recto and the University
Belt in order to prevent the commission of crimes as well as to effectively monitor
traffic flow in major roads in the city (Estrada, 2014);
Whereas, data shows that the crime rate in the Philippines for the year 2012 is 227 per
100 000 people with the average monthly crime rate in NCR alone being 38.57.
(Crime Statistics at a Glance, 2013);

Whereas, the average monthly crime rate in NCR in January 2013 increased to 76.76
percent for every population of 100 000 (The Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2013);
Whereas, it was stated in a report by Superintendent Ronnie Montejo, station
commander of Quezon City Police District Station 6 in Batasan, that after the
installation of CCTV cameras in their area, an 89 percent decrease in crimes was
observed (The Philippine Star, 2012);
Whereas, the action will be part of the city governments anti-criminality and disaster
preparedness campaign (Estrada, 2014);
Whereas, MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino stated that installation of CCTV cameras
will provide wider monitoring coverage, and further advance the agencys quick
dispatch, rapid response, and better coordination particularly during critical
situations. Moreover, CCTV cameras are also said to have speed detection,
vehicle classification, counting function, and face recognition (Elona, 2013);
Whereas, Mayor Estrada said that the P10-million (See Appendix B) project is also
meant to boost disaster preparedness especially during the wet season when
many of the citys waterways overflow and leave roads and communities under
water (Damaso, 2014);
Whereas, Manilas future Command Center a state of the art surveillance center
where traffic, anti-crime and even disaster preparedness monitoring [from
installed CCTV cameras] will be conducted 24/7 is given a once-over by Former
President Manila Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada to determine the progress of its
construction (Manila City Gov, 2014);
Whereas, the Manila Command Center otherwise called the Emergency Response
Assistance Program will serve as the nerve center (Top Gear, 2014), which
relays information from the CCTV cameras to the concerned departments, for
them to respond to it immediately;
Whereas, the action will provide safety and security for the members of De La Salle
University- Manila, especially to those who commute;
Wherefore, be it resolved that this manifesto (See Appendix A) be presented, reviewed
and approved by the Legislative Assembly;
Wherefore, be it finally resolved that this manifesto be approved and forwarded to the
Office of the City Mayor, and all necessary offices in the University.
Adopted, June 20, 2014

Appendix A
MANIFESTO ON THE INSTALLATION OF CCTV CAMERAS AROUND
MANILA

We, the students of De La Salle University, support the project of Manila City
Mayor Joseph Estrada and Vice Mayor Isko Moreno, which is the installation of
185 CCTV cameras around Manila City. We believe that this project will not only
promote safety and security among Manila City residents, but also to members of
De La Salle University-Manila. We agree that CCTV cameras must be installed in
the locations mentioned by the Mayor, because these are the populated places in
the city. However we want to add that strategic locations for the installation must
include areas which have high crime rates and are prone to accidents and
disasters, especially the university perimeters.
This project is part of the city governments anti-criminality and disaster
preparedness campaign. With this being said, the projects objective is to make
Manila City a better place to live in, or at least to be at. With the rainy season
approaching, the project is timely because it is helpful with disaster
preparedness. The cameras will be able to see areas being affected, and the
government will be able to take action on it before it gets worse. Also, this project
will help enforcing road discipline to avoid too much traffic and accidents,
especially in main roads. The cameras will be able to track down vehicles
violating the traffic rules because CCTV cameras could capture its plate
numbers.
Though we are for the project, we want to establish the following conditions
before the project should be fully implemented. For transparency purposes, the
complete breakdown of the budget allocation and the expenses for the project
must be accessible to the public. Moreover, the city government should ensure
that the monitoring body and the responding body will undergo appropriate and
comprehensive training programs for the assurance of proper implementation.
The public must also be informed of what to do or who to contact from these
authorities in case of traffic or weather incidents that concern them. Finally, we
ask the government of Manila City to constantly monitor the effectiveness of this
project through conducting research on crime rates, and statistics regarding
safety and security.

Appendix B

References:
CCTV cameras curb crimes in QC by 89%. (2012, December 9). The Philippine Star.
Retrieved June 4, 2014, from
http://www.philstar.com/metro/2012/12/09/883385/%E2%80%98cctv-camerascurb-crimes-qc-89%E2%80%99
Crime statistics at a glance. (2013, June). Senate. Retrieved June 4, 2014, from
http://www.senate.gov.ph/publications/AAG%202013-05%20%20Crime%20Statistics.pdf
Command Center. (2014). Manila City. Retrieved June 4, 2014 from
http://manila.gov.ph/command-center/
Damaso, M.J. (March 21, 2014). Manila to install more spy cameras. Manila Standard
Today. Retrieved June 4, 2014 from
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2014/03/21/manila-to-install-more-spy-cameras/
Did you know: NCR crime rate. (2013, May 7). Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June
4, 2014, from http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/403389/did-you-know-ncr-crime-rate-2
Elona, J. (2013, March 18). MMDA installs 100 more CCTV cameras to enhance
monitoring coverage. Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved from June 4, 2014,
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/375747/mmda-installs-100-more-cctv-cameras-toenhance-monitoring-coverage#ixzz34Ew2uiAZ
Manila rushing installation of 185 CCTV cameras. (2014, March 19). The Philippine
Star. Retrieved June 4, 2014 from,
http://www.philstar.com/metro/2014/03/19/1302453/manila-rushing-installation185-cctv-cameras
Manila to launch state-of-the-art traffic command center. (2014, May 16). Top Gear.
Retrieved June 16, 2014 from http://www.topgear.com.ph/news/motoringnews/manila-to-launch-state-of-the-art-traffic-command-center