MANILA – The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) on Sunday ordered all its units to intensify bomb threat awareness campaigns in Metro Manila schools, emphasizing coordinated responses, prompt threat assessments and proper emergency procedures to protect students and school staff while minimizing unnecessary class disruptions.
The directive follows a bomb threat reported on Oct. 23 at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) St. Martin de Porres Building (Faculty of Medicine and Surgery) in Manila.
A letter containing the threat was found inside a cubicle in the women’s restroom, prompting a disruption of classes.
Included in the threat were the Main Building (Faculty of Civil Law, Faculty of Pharmacy and College of Science; Office of the Rector and other offices; and Museum of Arts and Sciences) and St. Raymund de Peñafort Building (Faculty of Arts and Letters and College of Commerce and Business Administration).
As a precaution, UST shifted to remote arrangements the next day.
NCRPO officer-in-charge Brig. Gen. Christopher Abrahano stressed the need for schools and responding authorities to act swiftly and systematically whenever a bomb threat is reported.
He directed police units to strengthen coordination with school administrators, security personnel, local government units and emergency responders to ensure established protocols are clearly understood and properly implemented.
“Every bomb threat must be taken seriously, but our response must also be disciplined, coordinated and guided by established procedures,” Abrahano said.
“We need schools to know exactly whom to contact, how to report threats, when to activate emergency measures and how to work with responding authorities.”
Clear protocols are essential to protect lives, prevent panic and avoid unnecessary delays in determining the appropriate response, Abrahano said.
He said awareness campaigns should cover proper threat reporting, immediate coordination with police and emergency responders, orderly evacuation when warranted, securing affected areas, and conducting appropriate security assessments before normal school activities resume.
The NCRPO chief likewise reminded school officials and security teams to preserve available evidence and refrain from spreading unverified information that could heighten public anxiety. (Christopher Lloyd T. Caliwan/PNA)
