The Davao City Overland Transport Terminal Management has ensured tight security in the terminal even with the temporary closure of the main passenger entrance, which included also the temporary closure of baggage X-ray machines and walk-thru scanners.
DCOTT Manager Aisa Usop, in an interview with the City Information Office on Tuesday, said that the closure of the main passenger entrance was done to give way to the Php 1.7 million rehabilitation project estimated to be completed within three months.
“We are closing only the entrance,” Usop said, adding that the rehab seeks to remedy the leaking of the roof in the area.
Passengers entering the terminal can use the temporary entrance Mr. Donut, which was formerly the gate intended for DCOTT employees.
The temporary gate was opened on February 9, 2024, Friday.
Usop assured the public that they coordinated with the security cluster for the augmentation of men in uniform, as well as the auxiliary police, for the manual baggage inspection even as they anticipated passenger influx for the Araw ng Dabaw and the Holy Week.
“Before nato na gipa-open we coordinated with the security clusters no nagpatawag og meeting ang Public Safety and Security Office (PSSO) kay ni-coordinate ta didto (Before we opened [the temporary] entrance, we coordinated with the security clusters, the PSSO called for a meeting because we coordinated with them),” Usop said.
Attendees of the meeting included the representatives of Task Force Davao, who requested the presence of police in the area on top of the TFD, security guards, or the civil security units. The PSSO meeting was also attended by the Davao City Police, the Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Canine Group, the
City Transport and Traffic Management Office, the Civil Security Unit, the Tourist Police, and the Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.
“Gipaningkamutan diha nga ang security implementation ma maintain lang gihapon nato ang peace and order within the DCOTT periphery, within the DCOTT terminal na mga palibot pud sa iyaha (What we are really working on is the security implementation, that peace and order would be maintained within the DCOTT periphery and
the areas surrounding the DCOTT terminal),” Usop said.
To maintain the order of passengers and avoid delays due to the manual checking of the bags/baggage, the DCOTT also placed more than two lanes for inspection.
“Gihimo natong 3-4 lanes ang inspection sa atong mga pasahero nga musulod. Ang Task Force Davao committed nga duha sa ilaha, isa from police, isa sa atong CSU under diri sa atong DCOTT. Since we don’t have these baggage X-ray machine naa man ta’y K-9 so ginapa-amoy nato sa ilaha ang mga bagahe nga mga dagko gyud (We alloted 3-4 lanes for the inspection of passengers going inside the terminal. The Task Force Davao manages two lanes, one handled by the police and one handled by the CSU under the DCOTT. Since we do not have the baggage X-ray machine, we use our K-9s so we let them sniff the big baggage),” Usop said.
Usop said they also coordinated with the police for possible K-9 augmentation. Apart from K-9, the DCOTT is also equipped with more than 30 Closed-circuit TV (CCTV) cameras.
The DCOTT management also coordinated with the DCPO Traffic Enforcement Unit (TEU) and the CTTMO for the smooth flow of traffic along Maya St. and Candelaria St.,
especially during the Araw ng Dabaw and Holy Week.
Usop is asking the public to bear with these changes in the terminal.
“Muhangyo lang pud ta sa atong katawhan sa cooperation sa atong management because of these changes and at the same time mangayo pud ta sa ilahang ka-active pud ba, ang atong men in uniform, non-men in uniform nagatuyok diha, once nga naa sila’y mamatikdan dapat nila isumbong dayon sa atoang mga kapulisan ug atoang Task Force Davao (We are asking the public’s cooperation because of these changes, and at the same time we are asking them to be active, our men in uniform, and non-men in uniform are just roaming around, once they see something suspicious they should report it immediately to our police and Task Force Davao),” Usop said.
Dabawenyos may read the full copy of the closure advisory at the Davao City Overland Transport Terminal-FMOD- Facebook Page. Inquiries may also be relayed to the office through 297-5737 or dcottfmod@gmail.com. CIO
