Citing the importance of analytics, the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) have launched an anti-crime program called ?Oplan Lambat-Sibat? that uses data-driven strategies to solve the rising number of crimes in the metropolis.
?If you can?t measure it, you can?t manage it,? said DILG secretary Mar Roxas as he stressed the need for a systematic and data-based approach in fighting crime.
Without disclosing the data analytics software that the PNP is using, Roxas said that since June, the government has been addressing the growing number of petty crime incidents in the metropolis.
Roxas said they have already identified the root causes of the ineffective and inefficient PNP operations, including unplanned decision-making, working in silos, and sporadic anti-criminality efforts.
?We can no longer tolerate arbitrary, uncoordinated and inconsistent efforts,? Roxas said.
From an average of 900-1000 incidents of robbery, theft, motorcycle, and car napping per week in June, Roxas said the crime level in Metro Manila has been reduced to 520, as of the third week of November.
?We can now establish causality between the number of our police interventions and the rate of decrease in the number of reported crimes,? Roxas remarked.
?If you?re a criminal, it?s not just the anti-kidnapping group (AKG) or the highway patrol group (HPG) that will after you. You?ve got the whole of PNP on your tail,? he added.
Roxas also emphasized the value of a data-driven strategy in ensuring integrity and accountability among police officers.
?That?s the beauty of data. It?s not about connections. Officers are evaluated based on performance,? Roxas said.
According to the DILG chief, data and analytics-driven policies comprise only one aspect that can make for a smarter and more efficient enforcement of law and order in the streets.
