‘Oplan Lambat’ anti-crime strategy to be implemented in C Luzon, Calabarzon

DILG Secretary Mar Roxas (Photo by the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office)

Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas said that the anti-crime strategy – known as Oplan Lambat – which has allegedly lessened Metro Manila’s weekly crime rate by as much as half will also be enforced in Central Luzon and the Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon (CALABARZON) regions of the country.,

In an interview held at Camp Crame, the chief of the Interior said: “These regions were chosen to be the areas where our renewed anti-crime campaign will be cascaded because of they are near NCR (National Capital Region).”

Under Oplan Lambat (translated as Operation Net) – which was set into motion in Metro Manila in July 2014 – police authorities are required to conduct random vehicle inspections at designated checkpoints, implement targeted operations against criminality and criminal syndicates, inspect residences for firearms with expired licenses, and deploy personnel in strategic locations.

As part of the operations of Oplan Lambat each police station is mandated to daily carry out nine random mobile checkpoints, and a minimum of 25 inspections of residences of owners with expired or delinquent gun licenses.

Also, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) was given the task of taking down 16 criminal syndicates; nine of which had been dissolved, as of December 2014.

Data from the agencies concerned reportedly indicates a drop in the crime rate in Metro Manila; from a weekly crime average of over 1,000 cases, to just above 500 cases each week.

According to Roxas, Central Luzon and the CALABARZON regions were picked on account of high levels of criminality recorded over several years.

“If we will look into the population data, these two regions have dense population after Metro Manila. And we all know that big population usually translates to high crime rate because of the presence of more victims and more business establishments to prey on,” Roxas noted.