THE AREA STUDY OF BARANGAY LUCIANO, TRECE MARTIRES, CAVITE, EXAMINES THE CHALLENGES ARISING FROM THE ABSENCE OF A LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PRESENCE IN BARANGAY LUCIANO, FOCUSING ON ITS IMPACT ON RESPONSE TIMES, COMMUNITY TRUST, AND PERCEPTIONS OF SAFETY. THE STUDY WHICH UTILIZED QUALITATIVE APPROACH THROUGH INTERVIEWS AND FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION WITH RESIDENTS AND BARANGAY OFFICIALS, HIGHLIGHTS THE SIGNIFICANTS CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY AND OUTLINES AN ACTION PLAN TO ADDRESS THESE GAPS.
THE STUDY REVEALS THAT THE LACK OF A DEDICATED POLICE PRESENCE RESULTS IN DELAYED RESPONSE TIMES, WHICH HEIGHTENS FEELINGS OF FEAR AND INSECURITY AMONG RESIDENTS. THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH FINDINGS FROM STUDIES BY SLOCUM ET AL. (2013) AND BRADFORD & JACKSON (2018), WHICH SHOW THAT DELAYED POLICE RESPONSES CAN ERODE PUBLIC CONFIDENCE AND INCREASE THE SENSE OPF VULNERABILITY IN COMMUNITIES. RESIDENTS EXPRESSED FRUSTRATION OVER HAVING TO RELY ON NEIGHBORING AREAS FOR EMERGENCY SUPPORT, OFTEN LEADING TO AVOIDABLE DAMAGES AND HEIGHTENED TENSIONS. FURTHERMORE, THE ABSENCE OF LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT HAS NEGATIVELY IMPACTED TRUST IN PUBLIC SAFETY INITIATIVES. MANY RESIDENTS ARE RELUCTANT TO ENGAGE IN NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH PROGRAMS OR OTHER SAFETY INITIATIVES , AS THEY PERCEIVE THEM AS INEFFECTIVE WITHOUTB IMMEDIATE LAW ENFORCEMENT SUPPORT (DELA ROSA, 2019; DE CROO, 2020). THIS LACK OF LOCAL COORDINATION HAMPERS THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PEACE AND ORDER EFFEORTS IN BARANGAY LUCIANO.
TO ADDRESS THESE CHALLENGES, THE STUDY PROPOSES TO ESTABLISH STRATEGIC PATROL POSTS EQUIPPED WITH ESSENTIAL TOOLS, IMPLEMENT CONTINUOUS PATROL SCHEDULING, AND PROVIDE REGULAR TRAINING FOR BARANGAY TANODS. INSTALLING ADDITIONAL CCTV CAMERAS, DEVELOPING A RAPID COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, AND ENCOURAGING ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN A COMMUNITY WATCH PROGRAM WILL ALSO STRENGTHEN LOCAL SECURITY EFFORTS. FURTHERMORE, CONDUCTING PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS, COLLABORATING WITH LOCAL BUSINESSES, AND REGULARLY EVALUATING ANTI-DRUG AND CRIME PREVENTION PROGRAMS WILL SUPPORT A COMPREHENSIVE, COMMUNITY-FOCUSED APPROACH TO CRIME PREVENTION. IN CONCLUSION, STRENGTHENING LAW ENFORCEMENT SUPPORT WITHIN BARANGAY LUCIANO IS VITAL FOR ENSURING QUICKER RESPONSE TIMES, RESTORING COMMUNITY TRUST, AND ENHANCING SAFETY. BY IMPLEMENTING THE ACTION PLAN PROVIDED BY THE STUDY, BARANGAY LUCIANO CAN CREATE A MORE SECURE ENVIRONMENT, HELP MAINTAIN ITS "DRUG-CLEARED" STATUS, AND FOSTER A SAFER, MORE ENGAGED COMMUNITY.