Manila: Around 700 motorcycle units are set to be deployed to help police officers provide security to tourists, including foreign ones, this March, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Monday. "For this month of March, we will be beefing up the mobility capability of our units with the issuance or distribution of 700 motorcycles. We will be targeting our tourist areas," PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said at a press briefing.

According to Philippines News Agency, the PNP is also considering the formation of "tourist police units" as mandated by Republic Act No. 9593, or the Tourism Act of 2009. This law requires the PNP to establish security forces and police assistance desks in high tourism traffic areas. It also mandates the Department of Tourism to collaborate with the Department of the Interior and Local Government to train PNP personnel in cultural sensitivity, languages, and relevant laws.

In the same press briefing, Nartatez defended the PNP-Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG) for providing motorcycle escorts to secure VIPs in transit, amid criticism that they are contributing to worsening traffic conditions in Metro Manila. He emphasized the necessity of providing motorcycle escorts for high-ranking officials such as the president, vice president, chief justice, speaker, and Senate president. "The point is, if there is a need for motorcycle escorts, then we will provide escorts," he stated.

During a Senate hearing last week, Senator Joseph Victor 'JV' Ejercito, head of the Senate Committee on Public Order, raised concerns about the PNP-HPG escorting 20 to 30 VIPs during rush hour. Nartatez assured that the PNP-HPG coordinates with the Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, and traffic enforcers regarding VIP convoys.