In the wake of the robbery incident at SM Megamall over the weekend, a Palace spokesperson on Monday called on all mall operators to tighten security to make sure untoward incidents do not happen in such public areas.
“We would like to appeal to the mall operators to study their security measures and make sure that the security equipment that they have installed in their premises... detect the presence of firearms,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said at a news briefing.
The explosion inside SM Megamall has caused outrage since the robbers were able to enter the mall with firearms, execute the robbery, and escape several layers of security, all without getting caught.
Police have since announced that they have leads on at least two of the men who pulled off the heist, saying their faces were "clearly captured" by the mall's closed-circuit television cameras.
"CCTV review is ongoing. Two faces were clearly captured," the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said Sunday evening.
For his part, Lacierda reminded mall owners and operators to review their security systems to ensure mall goers’ safety.
“I think the SM management should take stock of the security measures that they have in their own malls and that goes not only for SM but also for the other mall operators,” Lacierda said.
Lacierda added that it is important for malls to be safe, as Pinoys spend a lot of time in malls.
“It’s important that [malls be secure because] we have a culture of malling, that’s unique with the Filipinos,” he said.
SM management statement
In a statement, SM Management said initial reports showed that the 'Martilyo Gang' was behind the robbery.
"They pounded the jewelry fixtures, broke the glass and stole an undetermined amount of jewelry before escaping. A gunshot was reportedly fired at the ceiling but no one was hurt," the statement said.
The management said it "deeply regrets the robbery incident," and apologized for the scare that the incident may have caused.
"We would like to assure the public that the management has further beefed up security," SM Management said. — Patricia Denise Chiu/RSJ, GMA News
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