Compared to other sports, security will be tighter in the venues of basketball and football games for the 30th Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) over a possibility that both fans and players maybe carried away by the competition and initiate trouble.
Brig. Gen. Debold Sinas, director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), said that instruction were already given to ground commanders to ensure readiness of policemen in securing venues for the two sports.
Basketball games will be held at the Mall of Asia arena in Pasay City while football games will be at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium in Manila.
“Security in those areas will be tight as a precautionary measure because we are anticipating the possibility of troubles due to intense competition,” said Sinas.
Aside from the regular police presence, anti-riot cops will be put on standby for any eventuality.
“We will also be fielding plainclothes policemen, especially during expected hotly contested games as part of monitoring and early detection if the situation is becoming intense,” said Sinas.
Sinas said that aside from ensuring enough personnel to address riots, there were also measures that would be implemented as a preventive measure.
One of them is the prohibition of carrying things that could be used in harassing players and fans, like soda cans that can be used to throw at players during the games.
Bladed weapons and other deadly materials are prohibited inside the sport venues.
Posters and other cheering materials that contain racist chants and remarks are also prohibited.
Sinas said they reviewed games in the past Southeast Asian Games and other major sports events and they served as inputs on how to effectively secure hotly contested games.
“We are ready for this. We have long prepared for this event and our men know what to do,” said Sinas. (Aaron Recuenco)
