Gen. Benjamin Acorda, Jr., chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), has vowed to intensify the campaign against cybercrimes as he noted an increase in the number of scams and other online-related crimes.
While the crime volume in connection with street crimes and Eight Focus crimes declined in 2023 compared to 2022, Acorda said there is a need to focus this year on cybercrimes in order to expand the crime decline in cyberspace.
“In dissecting our crime statistics, although the crime volume went down, we noticed that the cybercrimes or crimes on the internet like scamming, are still there,” said Acorda in an interview over Radyo Pilipinas.
“So part of our 2024 looking forward is to intensify the capability enhancement of the police in addressing this aspect of criminality,” he added.
The PNP’s Anti-Cybercrime Group is primarily in charge of crimes committed online.
While there was significant improvement in the anti-cybercrime capability of the ACG through trainings and procurement of equipment, Acorda said there is a need to do more not only in cyber-patrolling and cybercrime solution but also in encouraging the public to trust the PNP’s capability in addressing their concerns.
In general, Acorda said they have to continue working to get the trust and confidence of the Filipino people and this is done, according to him, through honest service and the continuity of internal cleansing.
“While we do aggressive police operations, we want it done honestly and another one is integrity enhancement to really get the support of the people,” said Acorda.
He emphasized that successful policing requires cooperation and coordination between the police and the community.
In terms of PNP performance in 2023, Acorda expressed belief that the PNP did better as manifested by high trust ratings of the police based on some surveys.
“I always believe that in order to achieve a peaceful community, police have to perform well and listen to what the community has to say. We really should work together,” said Acorda.