Iloilo eyes ordinance requiring CCTV cameras for hotels

MANILA, Philippines — Following the grisly killing of a non-government organization organizer in one of the city's hotels, the Iloilo City government will soon require hotels to have closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras. Online news site The News Today (www.thenewstoday.info) reported that city councilor Ely Estante is now studying an ordinance requiring the hotels to install CCTV systems. City mayor Jerry Treñas said that to protect clients, hotels must install CCTV cameras along the lobby and hallways so personnel could monitor the entry and exit of hotel guests. He admitted the move stemmed from the recent killing of non-government organization organizer Epi Ramos at the Eon Centennial Hotel. Treñas said he will discuss the matter on hotel guest security with the Iloilo Hotels, Restaurants and Resorts Association (IHRRA). For its part, the association headed by Happy Abenir is willing to discuss the matter with hotel owners since CCTV cameras require big investment. Ramos was the chief executive officer of Field Epidemiology Training Program Alumni Foundation Inc., a partner organization of the Department of Health, and was spearheading a training seminar at the hotel when the incident happened. Initial investigation showed Ramos may have allowed male escort service inside his room. Police said Ramos was brutalized and robbed of two laptop computers, two cell phones, a wallet containing an undetermined amount of cash and seminar registration fees amounting to some P100,000. Ramos bore at least 20 stab wounds, including four on the head and five on the chest. Defense wounds were also present on both arms indicating a struggle ensued. Estante, chairman of the city's Task Force Adams Apple, said the suspects might be members of a big-time syndicate preying on homosexuals. - GMANews.TV