ILOILO City – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in Region 6 in now in full alert status following the deadly blast in a church in Jolo, Sulu last Sunday, which claimed at least 21 lives.
PCG-Iloilo commander Lieutenant Rodolfo Dela Peña said their personnel were deployed for seaborne patrols in coastal areas in Western Visayas to make sure that terrorists, particularly the Abu Sayyaf group, cannot enter the region.
The PCG is closely coordinating with barangay officials of coastal areas to secure the entry and exit points in the region.
Aside from this, the PCG is also strictly inspecting ports with its K9 units should there be explosives or illegal drugs entering Western Visayas.
According to Dela Peña, their security efforts are now “tripled.”
“Kon sa Dinagyang gin-double namon ang security, subong gina-triple namon
para maiwasan ta nga baka masudlan kita diri sa Iloilo,” he said.
Dela Peña is encouraging the public – especially passengers of roll on, roll off seas vessels and fast crafts – to report any suspicious activity or personality.
“I-report gid nila sa captain sang barko. Kon may yara sila sang cellphone number sang authority i-direct nila report kay aksyonan namon,” he added.
The PCG has earlier deployed 20 additional personnel covering the waters of Iloilo and Guimaras./PN
