Shopping malls are a favorite of people. It’s a place for us to find our shopping needs, a place to hang out with friends, a place to indulge, and a place to do whatever pleases us. But are they safe to roam around? After several insurgent attacks in public places, most governments instated a shopping mall security policy in all public malls to prevent any more casualties. But how safe are our malls these days?
If you try getting into any mall, be it a modest three-floor mall nearest to your house or the biggest mall in the country, you get stopped by shopping mall security guards armed with handheld metal detectors, batons, sticks, and the sole purpose of checking your belongings for any dangerous paraphernalia. Yet as you present your bag, the metal detectors lay untouched on the table, the batons stay at their waist, and the sticks inserted through your bag’s opening and after a quick check-look not even lasting for five seconds, you are then allowed to pass. How trained are these guys that even after a mere glance, they could deem you to be of no danger to everyone in the mall?
Just recently, a text message has been passed around warning of a bomb threat to a certain mall in the Philippines. Should this message hold true, the efficacy of the implementation of shopping mall security is sure to be put to a test. The bombings in public places in Mindanao, Philippines could very well be carried out too in big cities like Manila. Therefore, tighter security measures must be followed to prevent such acts.
Home-made bombs aren’t exactly ‘rocket science. The bulk of materials needed are things that can be found within a mall itself with some pieces that can be easily assembled and disassembled. A group of people can easily come in with pieces seemingly not dangerous but then come together to bring those pieces together and leave the finished product in a corner to take several lives.
Beyond the security guards posted at entrances, beyond the rare bomb-sniffing dogs roaming around, beyond the five-second bag checks, shopping mall security must be upped several notches. Although the amount of time to thoroughly check bags may be bothersome to shoppers, at the very least, one can feel safe at a place that was meant for people to relax and have fun.