A CITY councilor said on Tuesday that the Public Safety and Security Office will monitor compliance by establishments on the CCTV Ordinance.
The statement came in the wake of the report that the condominium unit in Bajada where a couple was found dead on April 20 had no working CCTV.
Victims Jennifer Chavez and Jeffrey Predas were found in separate areas of the condo building with stab wounds.
Capt. Hazel Tuazon, Davao City Police Office spokesperson, said during the AFP-PNP Press Corps on April 24 that the absence of CCTVs made it difficult to identify the killers.
During the Aprubado sa Konseho on Tuesday, April 30, Councilor Luna Acosta, committee on peace and public safety chair, said a first round of inspection was conducted following the passage of the amended CCTV ordinance on Nov. 21, 2023.
However, the inspection focused more on schools, banks, and malls and did not include condominiums and hotels.
“To avoid instances like this, na sayang masyado, we could have the investigation a lot easier if only the CCTVs were working. We are hoping all covered establishments will comply with the said ordinance,” Acosta said.
Under Sec. 10 of the amended CCTV Ordinance, the owner or person in charge shall turn over the recording to law enforcement agencies upon request.
The ordinance covers commercial, industrial, or financial institutions with a declared minimum capital of P3 million and above.
Acosta added they are still waiting for the police investigation before deciding on the violation of the condo management.
The DCPO has coordinated with the City Mayor’s Office to fast-track the monitoring of CCTVs of establishments excluded from the first inspection.
Acosta revealed the enforcement unit of the ordinance lacks the personnel as checking the CCTV is highly technical given the specifications and placement standards set by the ordinance.
In the amended CCTV ordinance, the installation of CCTV cameras is required for business permit renewal. Businesses with working CCTVs are given a year depreciation period and are expected to comply with the current specifications set by the ordinance, after a year.
Meanwhile, entities with business permits but no CCTVs are given 30 days after the passage of the law.
As stipulated in the ordinance, the CCTV system shall be maintained in proper working order all the time and should be in continuous operation, installed in well-lit areas to pick up details such as the facial features of people and passersby.
Business establishments with a minimum capital of P3 million and above shall follow minimum specifications for the camera including high-definition analog or at least 2-megapixel digital camera, 0.1 lux minimum illumination, 2.8mm to 3.6 mm focal length, auto-iris focus lens, 1/30s to 1/50,000s shutter speed, >50-meter infrared range, 120 dB Wide Dynamic range, pan and tilt adjustment of 0 degrees to 180 degrees and rotate adjustment of 0 degrees to 360 degrees, and outdoor cameras must be vandal-proof and IP 66 weatherproof casing.
Video and audio input shall be 720p or 1080p resolution, 30 FPS, and at least 10 megabits per second, and should have a hard disk drive and/or cloud recording for storage.
Establishments covered shall strictly comply with the National Privacy Commission (NPC) guidelines on the use of CCTV systems as detailed in Section 4 of NPC Advisory No. 2020-04.
“Rest assured the DCPO, the business bureau, and the Public Safety and Security Office will continue to do the inspections. I hope the establishments covered will not wait before they improve and maintain CCTV systems,” Acosta said.
