ILOILO – Following concerns over a series of robbery incidents here targeting Indian nationals, often referred to as “Bombay” money lenders and collectors, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) convened a hearing to discuss preventive measures.
The most recent robbery events happened in Barotac Nuevo (three), Dumangas (one) and Mina (one).
During the Sept. 21 SP committee on public order and security hearing at the SP Session Hall of the Iloilo provincial capitol attended by leaders of Indian nationals conducting business in the province and city of Iloilo, it emerged that several robbery incidents went unreported because of a lack of business permits and fear of retaliation from suspects.
To address this, the SP and the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) reached an agreement during the hearing.
First, Indian nationals were urged to secure business permits from the local government units (LGUs) where they run money-lending operations.
Secondly, they should log their entry at municipal police stations for a record of their presence.
Moreover, they were advised to install GPS (global positioning system) trackers and hidden cameras on their service motorcycles to allow for immediate emergency response.
“There’s a pattern… It seems that Indian nationals are consistently the victims. The robbers are drawn to them because these victims often don’t report the incidents, and no one complains,” said the SP committee on public order and security chairperson, Provincial Board member June Mondejar.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Raymond Celoso, chief of the Provincial Investigation and Detection Management Unit of the IPPO, disclosed that 52 robbery incidents occurred in the province from Jan. 1 to Sept. 20 this year, with only six involving Indian nationals.
Out of these, 37 cases were solved, 10 were cleared, and five remain unsolved. He emphasized that while the police are making every effort to solve these cases, cooperation from victims remains a challenge.
Celoso assured that IPPO’s strategies across various departments, including operations, intelligence, police-community relations, and investigation, are well-established. These include deploying plainclothes officers in hotspot areas and conducting community outreach through symposiums./PN
