MAYOR Sebastian “Baste” Duterte has accused the Philippine National Police (PNP) of engaging in politics by undermining the city’s peace and order situation.
Citing Davao City’s third-place ranking with a 71.8 safety index on Numbeo, a global database of user-contributed data about cities and countries worldwide, the mayor asserted the city’s safety remains high, just below Singapore’s 77.0 index.
“To my fellow Davaoeños,” Mayor Duterte posted on social media, “Go to Numbeo, take a screenshot of where we stand today in terms of safety, peace, and order. We are just below Singapore at 71.8 as our score on the safety index. That is how hard we fought for this city for years.”
He further criticized the PNP for implementing “extraordinary and unwarranted administrative changes” that he believes are driven by political motives. “Good luck PNP! The Davaoeños are watching. We will remember this,” the mayor stated.
Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, a former Davao City Police Office (DCPO) chief, echoed the mayor’s concerns.
He emphasized the DCPO’s long-standing reputation as a “Hall of Famer” for upholding the principle that “the police are the community and the community are the police.”
Dela Rosa warned that demoralizing the DCPO could negatively impact the community’s morale and appealed to the PNP to treat all officials fairly.
