Army Thermal Scanner in Davao City, Welcome Sight vs Bad Guys

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

When I passed by recently at Toril District, Davao City – the first boundary of the city from Digos City, Davao del Sur Province, armed to the-teeth’s soldiers of the Task Force Davao clad in camouflage and wielding their  M-4  5.56×45mm NATO standard assault rifles flagged our air con van  from Kidapawan City, Cotabato Province. 

DAVAO. Task Force Davao personnel man the x-ray machine for public utility vehicles' passengers upon entering Davao City at the checkpoint in Toril, Davao City to ensure tighter security check. (Macky Lim)

The Cebuano speaking van driver told us passengers to disembark and bring all our belongings so they could enter the thermal machine scanner in the air con makeshift container van cum checkpoint for inspection.

The government is wary about bombs being sneaked by Islamist terrorists from Muslim populated provinces of Maguindanao and Cotabato to bomb thus maiming and killing the Christian population of Davao City.

Rappler.com reported that eight bombs had exploded that wounded and took the lives of countless of people in the city.

Lt. Col. Consolito Yecla, the commander of TF Davao, told the media that the use of scanner just like in Brgy. Sirawan. Toril District checkpoint would speed up inspection and lessen waiting time of the passengers.

He said from the usual seven minutes, the inspection is now reduced to four minutes with the use of baggage scanner, which was installed last week.

The x-ray machine – just like what you see in our airports, 5-Star Conrad Hotel in Pasay City and in Malacanang Palace – is a welcome sight. In my blog’s UselessMilitary Check Points in Davao City, I criticized in my commentary there the lack of foresight of our state security when I passed by at Toril in April, 2017.

“I was dismayed about the antiquated system of the military in searching the bags of those who entered Duterte’s City Davao. Since time immemorial I’ve been observing the lack of initiatives of our government in searching the belongings of the commuters and motorists for concealed bomb that have rocked the City for several times in the past. How can a 12 inches stick, son of a gun, used by the soldiers detect an improvised explosive device (IED) in the three different checkpoint hubs they use to dig like idiots the upper portion of the stuffs in the bag? How about the taped packages and the boxes at the back of the van, trunks of the car and bus? How about if there was a bomb hidden at the lower belly pan of the motor vehicles? The government could purchase efficient detectors for these soldiers like those explosive sniffing dogs, hand held metal detector, and car security camera with motion detection device that cost only U.S $150 apiece as shown in the internet. These instruments have been used by the guards at those huge malls' SM, Robinsons, plants of Coca-Cola and San Miguel Corporation, five star hotels, and other top 500 corporations in the country,” I wrote then.

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This sight in 2017 could be comparable to the stupidity of Congress in passing a law on requiring drivers of vehicles to retake an exam before the Land Transportation Office (LTO) issued a license made of bond paper, my goodness, because the leadership of the LTO did not preempt that they would be short of the plastic identification cards.

Soldiers from the Task Force Davao checkpoint in Barangay Sirawan, Toril District ask questions from motorists as part of the restriction measures. BING GONZALES

A friend in Dagupan City told me that cunning and enterprising Filipinos run around this LTO test. He said the masa did not take the exam themselves. They just pay the fixers outside the LTO for P500 to P300 per examinee for somebody to take an exam (which has no limit if one failed) for them in an internet connected computer or cellphone. The noble intention of Congress and LTO brass to make those who renew their license to restudy the highway laws thus honing their knowledge for the safety of everybody is not enough. This was a FIASCO since allowing examinees to take the 25-question text anywhere and not in the LTO office (while they are being watched not to cheat) was sheer stupidity among our lawmakers.

Ito ang epekto ng batas natin na naging butas pag karamihan sa members ng Congress nanalo sa eleksiyon dahil sa vote buying at mga bobotantes.

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There are still loopholes on the checkpoint in Toril, Davao City of the TFD despite the presence of the thermal scanner.

THIRTEEN DEAD and 64 wounded on the September 2, 2016 Davao City Night Market Bombing.

The soldiers did not flag down motorists riding on private vehicles even just to have a visual search inside of the cars – because the forcible opening of the vehicles’ doors, gloves and storage compartment and the trunk outside violates the Right of Privacy as provided by the Constitution.

Bombs can still be sneaked-in at the 182 villages burgeoning Duterte City and caused mayhem to the civilian population there. Of course this unless the soldiers and police in the nooks and crannies of the most progressive city in Mindanao are not vigilant to any bad guys that would plant their EIDs they manufactured in Cotabato, Lanao, or Maguindanao Provinces.

READ MY OTHER BLOG:

It’s the U.S not the Colombians that destroyed Escobar

MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA

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I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.