TACLOBAN CITY — The June 22 shooting at San Jose National High School (SJNHS) has triggered a wave of school-related threats across Eastern Visayas, with police recording 16 incidents online and identifying 10 minors allegedly responsible for the threats.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) said Thursday that four of the identified suspects have already been charged in connection with bomb threats, while six others remain unidentified.
Lt. Col. Analiza Armeza, spokesperson for the Police Regional Office-Eastern Visayas (PRO-8), disclosed the figures during a press conference on Thursday, August 27.
“Based on our record, we have received 16 school threat incidents after the June 22 incident,” Armeza said during the ‘Kapihan ha PIA” media conference.
The threats prompted some schools to suspend classes as a precautionary measure, reflecting heightened concern over campus safety following the deadly shooting in Tacloban City.
Armeza did not identify the schools that received the threats.
She said 10 alleged perpetrators had been identified, all of them minors, while the identities of six others remain unknown.
“Of the identified, four of them were charged due to bomb threat in relation to PD 1727,” she said.
Presidential Decree No. 1727 penalizes the malicious dissemination of false information or threats concerning bombs and explosives. The law provides for imprisonment of at least five years for violations.
Because the suspects are minors, those identified have been placed under the supervision of their respective local social welfare and development offices as children in conflict with the law.
The reported threats came in the aftermath of the June 22 shooting at SJNHS, one of the most serious school-based attacks reported in the country in recent years.
Two minors, aged 14 and 15, were implicated in the Tacloban incident, which killed three students and injured 20 others.
The 15-year-old suspect was charged with three counts of murder, three counts of frustrated murder and multiple counts of serious physical injuries. Both suspects are now under the custody of a rehabilitation facility managed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The Tacloban shooting prompted schools across the country to tighten security measures and reassess their preparedness for possible threats.
The concern was further underscored by another school shooting on August 18 at Ateneo de Zamboanga University in Zamboanga City, where two students were killed, including the Grade 10 student suspected in the attack.
Against this backdrop, police have increased their presence in schools across Eastern Visayas.
Armeza said around 4,520 police personnel have been deployed to 4,018 public schools and 193 private schools throughout the region.
“The deployment of police personnel to various schools across the region is now part of the regular duty of our police personnel,” she said.
The heightened police presence is intended to deter threats and violence, reassure students and school personnel, and allow authorities to respond more quickly to security incidents.
The 16 reported online threats also highlight a new challenge for schools following the Tacloban shooting: the spread of threats through social media and other online platforms, some of which may turn out to be hoaxes but still require authorities to take precautionary action to protect students and personnel.
For schools, the incidents have meant balancing the need to keep classes running with the responsibility of responding seriously to any threat, particularly in the wake of two deadly school attacks in the country.
ROEL T. AMAZONA, JOEY A. GABIETA
