INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Crime is a universal phenomenon; it has always been an integral part of
civilization and what concerns us today and makes it a major public issue is that
its incidence has been going up in all parts of the world and among all segments of
societies (Baldwin and Bottoms, 1976). For the first nine (9) months in 2018 the
crime volume in Eastern Visayas gets lower based on the comparative report of the
Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division (RIDMD), a total of 7,325
incidents were recorded from January to September in 2018 compared to 8,338 cases
recorded in 2017 and though crime rate drops, Philippine National Police (PNP)
should impose a strict and continuous campaign against criminality with
partnerships of researches which gives insights and strategy as an aid and integral
ingredient in efficient crime prevention. In 2014, there were about 558 crime
incidents per 100,000 individuals across the Eastern Visayas Region of the
Philippines. Provinces of Biliran, Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, Eastern Samar,
Southern Leyte, Ormoc and Tacloban comprise the region and has around 4.4 million
population. According to the Tacloban City police, in 2016 the crime rate in
Tacloban has been reduced by more than half. Police records show that from july 1
to September 29 2016, authorities recorded a total of 134 crimes, lower by 55
percent from 2015 297 crimes. Tacloban City police director Senior Superintendent
Rolando bade said the government war against drugs played an important role in the
crime reduction. A total of 2,759 drug users have surrendered on October 3, 2016
while others were neutralized. �Most of them (surrenders and naturalized) were also
involved in petty crimes like theft,� Bade said.