CABARROGUIS, Quirino (PIA) – The Quirino Police Provincial Office (QPPO) has reported a 20% decrease in the province’s crime rate from January to September 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.
Police Major Quintin Baquiran, officer-in-charge of the Provincial Operations and Management Unit, shared the positive news during the fourth-quarter Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) meeting.
Baquiran represented Provincial Director Augusto Bayubay at the meeting, where he highlighted the decline in both index and non-index crimes over the past year.
According to Baquiran, the QPPO recorded 80 non-index crime incidents, a reduction of 10 cases or 11.11% from the 90 incidents reported in the same period in 2023.
The QPPO reported 30 incidents for index crimes, marking a decrease of 19 cases or 38.78% from the 49 recorded last year.
“Additionally, there has been a decline in the eight focus crimes, except physical injury, which recorded one incident,” Baquiran noted.
Despite the reduction in crime rates, Baquiran emphasized that Quirino remains a relatively safe and peaceful province. This is reflected in the province’s Average Monthly Incident Crime Rate (AMICR) of 1.53 per 100,000 population, which is lower than both the regional AMICR of 1.96 and the national AMICR of 2.60.
To further strengthen public safety, the QPPO plans to ramp up efforts to combat crime in the province. This includes increasing the deployment of both covert and overt security personnel in crime-prone areas, intensifying anti-criminality campaigns, and exploring innovative crime prevention strategies.
These initiatives will involve coordination with local barangay officials, including organizing neighborhood watch programs and enhancing the Pulis sa Barangay initiative.(TCB/PIA-2, QUIRINO)
