MANILA, Philippines 鈥� The University of the Philippines Diliman contradicted on Saturday the remark of the Philippine National Police (PNP) calling Barangay UP Campus a 鈥�hotspot for crime鈥� and suggesting that there might be a shabu lab in the area.
鈥淣o shabu or illegal drug laboratory has ever operated inside the UP Diliman campus, according to the UP Diliman Public Safety and Security Office under the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Community Affairs,鈥� UP Diliman said in a statement.
Drug-related crimes accounted for only 1 percent of the security incidents on the campus, but none of those incidents 鈥� or three cases reported in February 2020 鈥� involved its staff, faculty, and students.
LOOK: UP Diliman speaks up on recent PNP claim that Barangay U.P. Campus, Quezon City is a "crime hotspot." | @ConsINQ
鈥� Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet)
The state university said its security team recorded a 63 percent decrease in crime incidents within the campus, comparing figures from 2019 and 2020.
鈥淟ikewise, there is no basis for the claim that UP is a hotspot for crime. In fact, the campus under the jurisdiction of the UPD Police, saw a drop of 63 percent in the number of recorded cases, from 247 in 2019 to only 91 in 2020,鈥� said UP.
UPD said it maintained 鈥渃ooperative relations鈥� with Camp Karingal, the headquarters of Quezon City Police District, and PNP Station 9 in Quezon City 鈥渙ver the years.鈥�
The UP-DND accord ensures UP Diliman as a peaceful and drug-free campus environment, said the university.
After the scrapping of the 1989 UP-Department of Defense accord, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said he would be are willing to have a dialogue with the university if it could explain the deaths of some students in clashes between the New People鈥檚 Army and the military.
The military moved to abrogate the deal, barring police and military at UP campuses, so that it would pursue its anti-insurgency measures, including the reported recruitment by communist rebels in schools.
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