Colombia’s National Police will deploy an extra 10,000 police officers to increase security in the country’s biggest cities, after mayors had requested for more police to halt the soaring murder rates.
National Police commissioner Oscar Naranjo told the mayors the extra forces will be on the streets in November this year.
Naranjo, President Alvaro Uribe, mayors of the biggest cities and a number of top officials met Wednesday to discuss the deteriorating security situation in Colombia’s urban areas.
The Mayor of Bogota, Samuel Moreno, highlighted the pressing security concerns regarding the region surrounding the capital.
According to a report by newspaper El Espectador on Wednesday, Moreno expressed his concerns at the council in the city in which he identified key issues that are allegedly contributing to Colombia’s increasing insecurity levels.
The Bogota Mayor resquested that the Government draw up a definitive bill to permenantly establish a percentage of public tax that will be destined solely for security programs throughout the region as well as the rest of Colombia.
The Mayor stressed that it was essential to develop strategies between local and national authorities with the intention of amplifying police manpower and intensifying the country’s Judicial Police.